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Saudi Housing Program Contributes $31.7 Bln to the GDP

Saudi Minister of Housing Majid Al-Hogail addresses the conference. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Minister of Housing Majid Al-Hogail addresses the conference. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Housing Program Contributes $31.7 Bln to the GDP

Saudi Minister of Housing Majid Al-Hogail addresses the conference. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Minister of Housing Majid Al-Hogail addresses the conference. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Minister of Housing Majid Al-Hogail stressed the importance of the housing sector to Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product.

 

The Saudi housing program contributed $31.7 billion to the GDP, he said, while real estate financing exceeded $194 million in the first quarter of 2023.

 

Al-Hogail’s remarks came during his participation in the fourth edition of the Saudi Housing Finance Conference, which is hosted by Euromoney Conferences in Riyadh.

 

Held in partnership with and co-hosted by the Housing Program, Real Estate Development Fund (REDF), General Authority for Real Estate (REGA) and Saudi Real Estate Refinance Company (SRC), the theme of this year’s conference is “Meeting the challenges of scale”.

 

The minister stated that the sector contributed to providing 227,000 job opportunities in the first quarter of 2023, noting that the ministry relied in its projects on modern environmentally friendly technology, social coexistence, humanization, and designs that suit the Kingdom’s environment.

 

Al-Hogail added: “The housing market continues to play a defining role in the Kingdom’s growth and development. That we have made such significant strides as a nation over the last few years owes a great deal to the contributions of our housing sector to the national economy.”

 

Meanwhile, statistics at the conference showed that the total subsidized real estate financing contracts during the past 6 years exceeded 724,000, with a total value of 429 billion riyals ($114.4 billion).

 

Mansour bin Madi, CEO of the Real Estate Development Fund, said: “The pioneering role of the real estate fund contributed to creating a real estate financing market that enhanced the opportunities... and enabled partners and financing agencies to devise programs that support the goals of the fund.”

 

More than 500 participants discussed during the conference the latest developments in the Kingdom’s transition to an effective and innovative housing market.

 

Talks also centered on lessons learnt from international markets, the importance of financial and capital markets, the new regulatory landscape, mega projects, liquidity, higher interest rates and educating the investor base.

 

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Asian Markets Drop as Trump's Tariff Deadline Looms

A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
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Asian Markets Drop as Trump's Tariff Deadline Looms

A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Most Asian markets fell Monday as countries fought to hammer out trade deals days before Donald Trump's tariff deadline, though investors took heart after he said the levies would not kick in until the start of next month.

While the White House has said several deals were in the pipeline, only two have been finalized ahead of the July 9 cut-off set by the US president, AFP said.

Governments from major trading partners including Japan, India, the European Union and South Korea have fought for the past three months to get agreements.

But Trump said he will send his first tariff letters at 1600 GMT Monday, setting out what Washington will charge for doing business with the United States.

He said an extra 10 percent would be added to any country "aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS", an 11-member alliance including Brazil, Russia, India and China.

The announcement came after leaders of the group warned Trump's "indiscriminate" import tariffs risked hurting the global economy.

The deadline for a deal is Wednesday, but Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed on Sunday that the measures would not be applied until August 1.

"It's not a new deadline. We are saying, this is when it's happening. If you want to speed things up, have at it. If you want to go back to the old rate, that's your choice," Bessent told CNN.

He said the rates will then "boomerang back" to the sometimes very high levels Trump announced on April 2, before the president suspended the levies to allow for trade talks.

"I would expect to see several big announcements over the next couple of days," Bessent said.

The president told reporters Sunday on Air Force One that "I think we'll have most countries done by July 9, either a letter or a deal", adding that some deals have already been made.

Tariff uncertainty weighed on equity markets, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Wellington and Taipei all down, though there were small gains in Singapore, Seoul, Manila and Jakarta.

Wall Street was closed Friday for a holiday.

"Whether deadlines get extended remains uncertain given Trump's unpredictable style," said IG market analyst Fabien Yip. "Our base case expects several important trade partners to agree on a high-level basis before the deadline.

"This would provide more time for detailed discussions over the following two months. The other risk factor is sector-specific tariffs covering semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and materials may also be announced in due course."

Oil prices sank after major producers in the OPEC+ alliance said they would boost output far more than expected in August, fueling demand worries just as Trump's tariffs are about to begin.

The group said "a steady global economic outlook and current healthy market fundamentals, as reflected in the low oil inventories" led to the decision to further hike output.