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Saudi Arabia Seeks to Become Global Logistics Hub

Saudi Transport Minister Saleh al-Jasser speaks at the Supply Chain and Logistics Conference in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Transport Minister Saleh al-Jasser speaks at the Supply Chain and Logistics Conference in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Seeks to Become Global Logistics Hub

Saudi Transport Minister Saleh al-Jasser speaks at the Supply Chain and Logistics Conference in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Transport Minister Saleh al-Jasser speaks at the Supply Chain and Logistics Conference in Riyadh. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia aims to become one of the most important countries in the world in contributing to supply chains, announced Transport Minister Saleh al-Jasser.

Jasser inaugurated the 5th edition of the Supply Chain and Logistics Conference in Riyadh.

The conference, held under the theme "Towards a sustainable supply chain to boost the circular economy," featured several ministers, senior officials, and heads of companies operating in the supply chain and logistics sector.

The two-day conference will feature 64 speakers from different countries and over 100 entities from the public and private sectors. It aims to promote discussions on various supply chain and logistics issues.

Fifty-two agreements were signed to strengthen supply chains and logistics operations during the conference's opening session.

Over the course of the event, participants will discuss the flexibility and sustainability of supply chains for the transition towards a circular economy, the development of specialized supply chains within the Kingdom, and the role of global supply chains in enhancing distribution operations.

At the conference, the Logisti platform is one of the transport and logistics initiatives under the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP) that offers critical commercial activities through the land, sea, and rail transport sectors.

In his opening speech, Jasser said the Kingdom is witnessing successive and unprecedented leaps in the development of the transport and logistics sector with the support of the Saudi leadership.

He added that progress has been visible in the sector since Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, launched the National Transport and Logistics Strategy.

The Strategy seeks to transform Saudi Arabia into a global logistics hub by effectively utilizing its strategic location.

The Minister reviewed the significant growth and development in the performance and efficiency of the Saudi logistics sector and the substantial and promising opportunities in the sector's services and economies.

To enhance the efficiency of its work, the Crown Prince launched the Master Plan for Logistics Centers, which calls for the formation of 59 centers with a total area of more than 100 million square meters across the Kingdom.

Jasser pointed out that his Ministry also launched initiatives to enhance the sector's performance, re-engineer processes, and apply international best practices to consolidate the Kingdom's position as a global logistics hub.

The Saudi logistics sector witnessed notable achievements during 2023 after the Kingdom jumped 17 spots globally in the Logistics Performance Index issued by the World Bank, advancing from 55th to 38th position.

Jasser said international and local investors are keenly interested in the sector.

"In the past two years, many agreements were signed to establish 12 logistics parks," he remarked.

The logistic zones are located at Jeddah Islamic Port, Dammam's King Abdulaziz Port, and King Fahd Industrial Port in Yanbu with a total investment of approximately $1.11 billion and are set to create over 13,000 direct and indirect jobs in the logistics sector.

The Kingdom jumped eight spots internationally according to the ranking of the London-based maritime journal Lloyd's List classification of the world's 100 largest ports by container handling volumes.

Jasser said the Saudi railway sector has also made substantial progress, adding that over 12 million tons of goods have so far been transported via rail service in the Kingdom, representing a 13 percent growth compared to the same period in 2022.

He stressed that the expansion of rail transportation also helped reduce around 970,000 truck journeys on the roads.

In the first half of the year, the Kingdom's air transport sector also experienced substantial growth in air traffic, passenger numbers, and air cargo operations. It is aligned with the aviation strategy which aims to increase air cargo capacity to 4.5 million tons and expand air connections to 250 destinations by 2030.

The significant progress in the logistics sector came with the support and empowerment of Crown Prince Mohammed and his continuous support to strengthen the Kingdom's position as a global logistics center following the targets of the National Strategy for Transport and Logistics.

Jasser stressed that the transport and logistics services system integrates its efforts with the public and private sectors to enhance supply chains and improve the Kingdom's ranking among the top ten countries in the Logistics Performance Index by 2030.

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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
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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.

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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
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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.

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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).
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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.