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Trump to Visit Saudi Arabia as Major Announcements Expected

Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)
Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)
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Trump to Visit Saudi Arabia as Major Announcements Expected

Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)
Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince attend a business lunch in Washington in 2018 (AFP)

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to arrive in Riyadh next Tuesday on his first official foreign trip since beginning his second term in office. The visit comes on the heels of an unplanned stop in Rome, where he attended the funeral of Pope Francis.

Saudi Arabia is once again Trump’s first international destination - mirroring his 2017 visit, which he described at the time as “highly successful.” This year, his Gulf tour will also include stops in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, running from May 13 to 16.

Since Trump’s first visit eight years ago - just a year after the launch of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 - the Kingdom has made significant strides toward economic transformation. The upcoming trip is expected to offer a real-time snapshot of that progress and serve as a tangible endorsement of the reforms set in motion by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Trump is expected to witness a vastly changed Saudi Arabia, with developments that reflect the ambitions of its long-term strategic agenda.

High-Level Deals

In the days leading up to Trump’s visit, expectations are mounting over a series of high-profile announcements. Speaking after his meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday, Trump hinted at “major developments” to be revealed during his Gulf tour.

Among the expected announcements is a preliminary agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, which US Energy Secretary Chris Wright discussed during his visit to Saudi Arabia last month. Wright said both sides were close to finalizing an agreement focused on civil nuclear energy and technological collaboration.

Deepening Strategic and Economic Ties

Trump’s return to Riyadh underscores the Kingdom’s importance in US foreign policy and economic strategy. The visit also aligns with the administration’s push to encourage foreign investment in the United States while expanding bilateral cooperation with key regional allies.

The trip is expected to attract a wave of influential American business leaders to the Saudi capital. Executives from Wall Street and Silicon Valley, including BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and Palantir CEO Alex Karp, will attend the Saudi-US Investment Forum, scheduled to coincide with Trump’s arrival.

Senior figures from CitiGroup, IBM, Qualcomm, Alphabet, and Franklin Templeton are also expected to participate. David Sacks, the White House’s top advisor on artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency, will also be present at the talks.

Coinciding with the upcoming summit, the Trump administration announced plans to roll back the “AI Export Restriction Rule” imposed under former President Joe Biden. The rule had placed strict controls on the export of advanced AI chips, even to allied nations.

A Longstanding Economic Partnership

Economic ties between the United States and Saudi Arabia remain robust, diversified, and steadily growing. In 2024, bilateral trade reached $32.3 billion, up from $22.9 billion in 2020. According to the Federation of Saudi Chambers, the US ranks as the Kingdom’s second-largest supplier and sixth-largest export destination.

Data from the US Census Bureau show that total US-Saudi goods trade in 2024 stood at $25.9 billion, with American exports valued at $13.2 billion and imports from the Kingdom at $12.7 billion. This left the US with a trade surplus of $443.3 million.

Saudi Arabia’s exports to the US include crude oil, fertilizers, organic chemicals, and metal products. Meanwhile, American exports to the Kingdom span pharmaceuticals, chemicals, grains, plastics, and high-tech equipment, including aerospace and medical devices.

According to a 2023 McKinsey report, transportation equipment led Saudi imports from the US at $5.9 billion, followed by medical instruments at $1.4 billion and pharmaceuticals at $1.3 billion. On the other side, energy products topped Saudi exports to the US at $14 billion, followed by chemicals and metals.

Bilateral Investment on the Rise

The investment relationship between the two nations is equally strong. As of the end of 2023, US foreign direct investment in Saudi Arabia totaled $57.7 billion, accounting for 23% of the Kingdom’s total FDI, according to the Saudi Ministry of Investment. These investments span critical sectors such as energy, infrastructure, real estate, and technology.

Saudi Arabia also holds substantial assets in the US, including approximately $127 billion in Treasury bonds as of February 2025. The Public Investment Fund (PIF) continues to pursue major stakes in key US companies, including Lucid Motors, Uber, Arm, PayPal, and Amazon. The PIF has also expanded into the gaming and tech sectors through investments in Scopely, Magic Leap, and Savvy Games Group.

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan has previously stated that the Kingdom’s total investments in the US exceed $770 billion.

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UN's FAO: World Food Prices Fall for 3rd Month in November

FILE PHOTO: Prices of food are displayed at the Borough Market in London, Britain May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Prices of food are displayed at the Borough Market in London, Britain May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
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UN's FAO: World Food Prices Fall for 3rd Month in November

FILE PHOTO: Prices of food are displayed at the Borough Market in London, Britain May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Prices of food are displayed at the Borough Market in London, Britain May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo

World food commodity prices fell for a third consecutive month in November, with all major staple foods except cereals showing a decline, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization said on Friday.

The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks a basket of globally traded food commodities, averaged 125.1 points in November, down from a revised 126.6 in October and the lowest since January, Reuters reported.

The November average was also 2.1% below the year-earlier level and 21.9% down from a peak in March 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the FAO said.

The agency's sugar price reference fell 5.9% from October to its lowest since December 2020, pressured by ample global supply expectations, while the dairy price index dropped 3.1% in a fifth consecutive monthly decline, reflecting increased milk production and export supplies.

Vegetable oil prices fell 2.6% to a five-month low, as declines for most products including palm oil outweighed strength in soy oil.

Meat prices declined 0.8%, with pork and poultry leading the decrease, while beef quotations stabilized as the removal of US tariffs on beef imports tempered recent strength, the FAO said.

In contrast, the FAO's cereal price benchmark rose 1.8% month-on-month. Wheat prices increased due to potential demand from China and geopolitical tensions in the Black Sea region, while maize prices were supported by demand for Brazilian exports and reports of weather disruption to field work in South America.

In a separate cereal supply and demand report, the FAO raised its global cereal production forecast for 2025 to a record 3.003 billion metric tons, compared with 2.990 billion tons projected last month, mainly due to increased wheat output estimates.

Forecast world cereal stocks at the end of the 2025/26 season were also revised up to a record 925.5 million tons, reflecting expectations of expanded wheat stocks in China and India as well as higher coarse grain stocks in exporting countries, the FAO said.

Business

World Bank Forecasts 4.3% Growth for Saudi Economy, Supported by Non-Oil Activities

The Saudi flag. Asharq Al-Awsat
The Saudi flag. Asharq Al-Awsat
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World Bank Forecasts 4.3% Growth for Saudi Economy, Supported by Non-Oil Activities

The Saudi flag. Asharq Al-Awsat
The Saudi flag. Asharq Al-Awsat

The World Bank affirmed on Thursday that Saudi Arabia's economy has gained significant momentum for 2026-2027, driven by robust non-oil sector expansion under Vision 2030.

In a report titled “The Gulf’s Digital Transformation: A Powerful Engine for Economic Diversification,” the World Bank said growth is expected to persist in the Kingdom with non-oil activities expanding by 4% on average.

The report lifted its forecast for Saudi Arabia’s real GDP growth to 3.8% in 2025 compared to a 3.2% last October.

The forecast represents a major upward revision affirming the resilience of the Saudi economy and its ability to absorb external volatility. It also indicates growing confidence in the effectiveness of ongoing structural reforms within Vision 2030.

On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia approved its state budget for 2026, projecting real GDP growth of 4.6% in 2026.

The report showed that in the Kingdom, economic momentum is strengthening across oil and non-oil sectors with non-oil activities expanding by 4% on average and oil activities expanding by 5.4%, bringing overall real growth to an average of 4.3%.

It said oil activities grew by 1.7% y/y in the first half of 2025, benefiting from the phase-out of OPEC+ voluntary production cuts starting in April 2025.

At the financial level, the fiscal deficit between 2025 and 2027 is projected to remain at an average of 3.8% of GDP.

Meanwhile, the current account balance slightly recovered, settling at 0.5% of GDP in the first quarter of 2025 against -2.6% in the second half of 2024.

The report said real GDP growth remained stable at 3.6% y/y in the first half of 2025, thanks to the stabilization of the oil sector and sustained non-oil growth.

Non-oil activities expanded by 4.8% over the period, in line with the performance of 2024 while non-oil growth was driven by the wholesale, retail trade, restaurants, and hotels sector (+7.5% y/y in the first half of 2025), consolidating the role of hospitality and tourism as engines of economic diversification.

The report also indicated that oil activities grew by 1.7% y/y in the first half of 2025, benefiting from the phase-out of OPEC+ voluntary production cuts starting in April 2025.

These trends are expected to persist in 2026-2027, with non-oil activities expanding by 4% on average and oil activities expanding by 5.4%, bringing overall real growth to an average of 4.3%.

Job Market and Inflation
The report said the labor market mirrors the stabilization of the real economy and is rapidly becoming more inclusive to women.

Overall unemployment decreased by 0.7 point between the first quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025, with the female unemployment rate dropping from 11.8% to 8.1% over the same period.

Also, inflation remained low and stable in Saudi Arabia, settling at an average of 2.2% in the first half of 2025.

However, price increases have been concentrated in the housing and utilities sector as rental prices have become a key issue, largely because rental supply has failed to match demographic growth, especially in Riyadh.

While this reflects the government’s efforts to dynamize the Kingdom’s urban centers, the price increases prompted the government to freeze rental prices in Riyadh for the next five years, as anticipated increases in housing supply should help control rental prices.

Finally, the report said Saudi Arabia’s external position stabilized in the second half of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025.

Although net foreign direct investment has remained relatively stable, the World Bank has emphasized that recent changes in foreign ownership regulations in Saudi Arabia, coupled with continued structural reforms, are positive steps to attract greater flows of foreign direct investment (FDI).

Business

Visa Relocates European Headquarters to London's Canary Wharf

FILE PHOTO: A drone view of London's Canary Wharf financial district, two days before the government presents its critical pre-election budget, in London, Britain March 3, 2024. REUTERS/Yann Tessier/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view of London's Canary Wharf financial district, two days before the government presents its critical pre-election budget, in London, Britain March 3, 2024. REUTERS/Yann Tessier/File Photo
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Visa Relocates European Headquarters to London's Canary Wharf

FILE PHOTO: A drone view of London's Canary Wharf financial district, two days before the government presents its critical pre-election budget, in London, Britain March 3, 2024. REUTERS/Yann Tessier/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view of London's Canary Wharf financial district, two days before the government presents its critical pre-election budget, in London, Britain March 3, 2024. REUTERS/Yann Tessier/File Photo

Visa is relocating its European headquarters to London's Canary Wharf financial district, the Canary Wharf Group said on Friday.

The firm is leasing 300,000 square feet on a 15-year term at One Canada Square, and is set to relocate from Paddington in the summer of 2028, the group added.

Canary Wharf Group, which runs the wider financial district and is co-owned by QIA and Canada's Brookfield, was hit hard by the pandemic-induced fall in office demand.

The area is now enjoying a rebound as more firms push staff to return to office, Reuters reported.

"Canary Wharf continues to attract a diverse range of global businesses. We are delighted to welcome Visa who have chosen the Wharf for their European headquarters as the best location to support their business growth," Shobi Khan, Canary Wharf Group CEO, said.

JPMorgan Chase last week unveiled a plan to build a tower in the Canary Wharf financial district that will contribute 9.9 billion pounds ($13.2 billion) over six years to the local economy - including the cost of construction - and create 7,800 jobs.

Qatar's sovereign wealth fund is revising plans for a revamp of its HSBC skyscraper in the east London district to retain more office space, Reuters reported in November.