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Int’l Mining Community Highlights Importance of Saudi Minerals in Meeting Global Demand

The International Mining Conference is currently being held in Riyadh, with the participation of stakeholders from around the world and major international companies. (Asharq Al-Awsat) 
The International Mining Conference is currently being held in Riyadh, with the participation of stakeholders from around the world and major international companies. (Asharq Al-Awsat) 
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Int’l Mining Community Highlights Importance of Saudi Minerals in Meeting Global Demand

The International Mining Conference is currently being held in Riyadh, with the participation of stakeholders from around the world and major international companies. (Asharq Al-Awsat) 
The International Mining Conference is currently being held in Riyadh, with the participation of stakeholders from around the world and major international companies. (Asharq Al-Awsat) 

Officials and investors emphasized on Wednesday the importance to uncover the Kingdom’s mining wealth, given the gap the world faces in the need for minerals and renewable energy.  

During the first day of the International Mining Conference in Riyadh, senior officials and heads of major international companies said Saudi Arabia was a stable source of energy, shedding light on the Kingdom’s insightful vision of the importance of the mining sector.  

Grant Shapps, British Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pointed to the presence of 14 strategic minerals in Saudi Arabia, underlining the importance of the global conference, which has brought together many investors in the world to discuss the future of mining.  

Eng. Naseer Ahamed, Sri Lankan Minister of Environment and Foreign Investment Promotion, unveiled new legislation in his country, which seeks to facilitate investment and monitoring in the sector.  

Benedikt Sobotka, CEO of Eurasian Resources Group (ERG), stressed the importance of the demographic dividend and the power of the youth in Saudi Arabia, noting that Riyadh would not face a problem in finding young national competencies in the mining sector.  

Robert Friedland, founder and CEO of the Canadian Ivanhoe Mines Group, stated that Saudi Arabia was a stable source of energy, applauding the great progress achieved by the Kingdom in this promising economic sector.  

Speaking at the second session of the international conference, Mike Henry, CEO of Australian Global Resources Company BHP, expressed optimism about the future of the mining sector, saying that the world would need up to three times more iron, nickel and other strategic minerals.  

Dominic Barton, President of Rio Tinto, touched on the most pressing issue of the current era: the gap between the world’s needs of minerals and renewable energy. 

Neil Crompton, the US ambassador to the Kingdom, revealed that the provision of strategic minerals was necessary to achieve the energy transition, noting that the US and Saudi Arabia were working to achieve this goal in a sustainable manner and in accordance with appropriate environmental standards.  

He added that countries have learned lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic about the importance of reliable supply chains that require appropriate international coordination, stressing that Saudi Arabia was moving forward in this direction and was one of the 10 largest partners of the United States.  

Meanwhile, Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf, Secretary General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, pointed to the great efforts led by Saudi Arabia to shed light on the importance of mining sector.  

He also praised the hosting the International Mining Conference in its second edition at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh, under the auspices of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz and with the participation of more than 60 countries from around the world.  

Al-Hajraf emphasized that the conference was an opportunity for the countries to present their efforts to promote the sector, benefit from experiences and exchange knowledge, as well as increasing the contribution of mining sector in the future.  

Al-Hajraf drew attention to the Kingdom’s leading role in energy supplies, indicating that the conference constituted a comprehensive international platform to provide opportunities for investors, mining companies and stakeholders in the sector to discuss economic developments and global environmental impacts on the metals industry.  

He added that the conference will discuss environmental and social practices and equal opportunities, and the means to build a sustainable mining industry, by examining the huge geological potential of the targeted areas, with the aim to achieve fruitful cooperation in this important field.

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Business

IMF and Arab Monetary Fund Sign MoU to Enhance Cooperation

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
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IMF and Arab Monetary Fund Sign MoU to Enhance Cooperation

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA
The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki - SPA

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference on Emerging Market Economies (EME) to enhance cooperation between the two institutions.

The MoU was signed by IMF Managing Director Dr. Kristalina Georgieva and AMF Director General Dr. Fahad Alturki, SPA reported.

The agreement aims to strengthen coordination in economic and financial policy areas, including surveillance and lending activities, data and analytical exchange, capacity building, and the provision of technical assistance, in support of regional financial and economic stability.

Both sides affirmed that the MoU represents an important step toward deepening their strategic partnership and strengthening the regional financial safety net, serving member countries and enhancing their ability to address economic challenges.

Business

Saudi Chambers Federation Announces First Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council

File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
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Saudi Chambers Federation Announces First Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council

File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT
File photo of the Saudi flag/AAWSAT

The Federation of Saudi Chambers announced the formation of the first joint Saudi-Kuwaiti Business Council for its inaugural term (1447–1451 AH) and the election of Salman bin Hassan Al-Oqayel as its chairman.

Al-Oqayel said the council’s formation marks a pivotal milestone in economic relations between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, reflecting a practical approach to enabling the business sectors in both countries to capitalize on promising investment opportunities and strengthen bilateral trade and investment partnerships, SPA reported.

He noted that trade between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait reached approximately SAR9.5 billion by the end of November 2025, including SAR8 billion in Saudi exports and SAR1.5 billion in Kuwaiti imports.

Business

Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
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Leading Harvard Trade Economist Says Saudi Arabia Holds Key to Success in Fragmented Global Economy

Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Professor Pol Antràs speaks during a panel discussion at the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies (Asharq Al-Awsat).

Harvard University economics professor Pol Antràs said Saudi Arabia represents an exceptional model in the shifting global trade landscape, differing fundamentally from traditional emerging-market frameworks. He also stressed that globalization has not ended but has instead re-formed into what he describes as fragmented integration.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the AlUla Conference for Emerging Market Economies, Antràs said Saudi Arabia’s Vision-driven structural reforms position the Kingdom to benefit from the ongoing phase of fragmented integration, adding that the country’s strategic focus on logistics transformation and artificial intelligence constitutes a key engine for sustainable growth that extends beyond the volatility of global crises.

Antràs, the Robert G. Ory Professor of Economics at Harvard University, is one of the leading contemporary theorists of international trade. His research, which reshaped understanding of global value chains, focuses on how firms organize cross-border production and how regulation and technological change influence global trade flows and corporate decision-making.

He said conventional classifications of economies often obscure important structural differences, noting that the term emerging markets groups together countries with widely divergent industrial bases. Economies that depend heavily on manufacturing exports rely critically on market access and trade integration and therefore face stronger competitive pressures from Chinese exports that are increasingly shifting toward alternative markets.

Saudi Arabia, by contrast, exports extensively while facing limited direct competition from China in its primary export commodity, a situation that creates a strategic opportunity. The current environment allows the Kingdom to obtain imports from China at lower cost and access a broader range of goods that previously flowed largely toward the United States market.

Addressing how emerging economies should respond to dumping pressures and rising competition, Antràs said countries should minimize protectionist tendencies and instead position themselves as committed participants in the multilateral trading system, allowing foreign producers to access domestic markets while encouraging domestic firms to expand internationally.

He noted that although Chinese dumping presents concerns for countries with manufacturing sectors that compete directly with Chinese production, the risk is lower for Saudi Arabia because it does not maintain a large manufacturing base that overlaps directly with Chinese exports. Lower-cost imports could benefit Saudi consumers, while targeted policy tools such as credit programs, subsidies, and support for firms seeking to redesign and upgrade business models represent more effective responses than broad protectionist measures.

Globalization has not ended

Antràs said globalization continues but through more complex structures, with trade agreements increasingly negotiated through diverse arrangements rather than relying primarily on multilateral negotiations. Trade deals will continue to be concluded, but they are likely to become more complex, with uncertainty remaining a defining feature of the global trading environment.

Interest rates and artificial intelligence

According to Antràs, high global interest rates, combined with the additional risk premiums faced by emerging markets, are constraining investment, particularly in sectors that require export financing, capital expenditure, and continuous quality upgrading.

However, he noted that elevated interest rates partly reflect expectations of stronger long-term growth driven by artificial intelligence and broader technological transformation.

He also said if those growth expectations materialize, productivity gains could enable small and medium-sized enterprises to forecast demand more accurately and identify previously untapped markets, partially offsetting the negative effects of higher borrowing costs.

Employment concerns and the role of government

The Harvard professor warned that labor markets face a dual challenge stemming from intensified Chinese export competition and accelerating job automation driven by artificial intelligence, developments that could lead to significant disruptions, particularly among younger workers. He said governments must adopt proactive strategies requiring substantial fiscal resources to mitigate near-term labor-market shocks.

According to Antràs, productivity growth remains the central condition for success: if new technologies deliver the anticipated productivity gains, governments will gain the fiscal space needed to compensate affected groups and retrain the workforce, achieving a balance between addressing short-term disruptions and investing in long-term strategic gains.