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Saudi Investment Delegation Concludes Visit to Syria with Deals Worth Nearly $6.4 Billion

Officials are seen at the Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum in Damascus. (SPA)
Officials are seen at the Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum in Damascus. (SPA)
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Saudi Investment Delegation Concludes Visit to Syria with Deals Worth Nearly $6.4 Billion

Officials are seen at the Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum in Damascus. (SPA)
Officials are seen at the Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum in Damascus. (SPA)

Saudi Arabia announced $6.4 billion of investments in Syria on Thursday, reflecting the Kingdom's deepening ties with interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa's government as it seeks to rebuild Syria after a 14-year civil war.   

The deals were unveiled by Saudi Investment Minister Khalid Al-Falih at the Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum in Damascus.   

Al-Falih said his visit to Syria came at the directives of Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, calling the trip "confirmation of the Kingdom's firm and supportive stance towards sisterly Syria".   

The investment deals included $2.93 billion for real estate and infrastructure projects and about $1.07 billion for the telecommunications and information technology sector, Al-Falih said.   

Businesses involved in the plans include telecommunications firms the Saudi Telecom Company (STC) and GO Telecom, digital security company Elm, cybersecurity firm Cipher, and Classera, an education technology company.   

Al-Falih said 47 agreements would be signed over the course of the conference, with more than 100 companies participating.   

Al-Falih also announced the establishment of a Saudi-Syrian Business Council at the event, which had been scheduled for June but was delayed due to the conflict between Iran and Israel.   

On the sidelines of the forum, a ministerial session was held featuring Al-Falih, Syrian Minister of Economy and Industry Dr. Mohammad Nidal Al-Shaar, Syrian Minister of Tourism Mazen Al-Salhani, and Saudi-Syrian Business Council and ACWA Power chairman Mohammad Abunayyan. 

The session highlighted the growing historical economic ties between Saudi Arabia and Syria and the support of the Saudi government, led by King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed, to provide all means of support and facilitation that contribute to Syria’s prosperity and recovery. 

The session addressed the role of Saudi businessmen and leading companies in helping in Syria’s reconstruction and economic revival through partnerships, consultations, and urgent, effective efforts to develop promising economic sectors. 

During the forum, Al-Badia Cement Company announced investments exceeding $200 million to expand its grinding and packaging lines and power generation plant, increasing production capacity to more than 5 million tons of cement annually.  

The company also pledged to explore partnership opportunities with the Syrian government to improve the performance of state-owned cement factories and support market stability. 

As part of the visit, Al-Falih held a meeting with several Syrian ministers, who discussed ways to boost cooperation in support of comprehensive development between the two nations. 

The visit also included field tours to several Saudi investment projects in Syria. Al-Falih laid the foundation stone for Al-Fayhaa Cement Factory, with an estimated investment of SAR 100 million and an annual production capacity of 150,000 tons. The project aims to support local Syrian content and facilitate knowledge transfer. 

He also laid the foundation stone for the Al-Jawhara Commercial Tower in Damascus, a Saudi-Syrian project with a built-up area of 25,000 square meters and an investment exceeding SAR 375 million. The tower will include office spaces, retail shops, and hotel units. 

Riyadh has been a key ally of Sharaa's government, which came to power after longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad was toppled in December, using its diplomatic influence to persuade US President Donald Trump to lift sanctions.   

Companies, many from Gulf states and Türkiye, have expressed interest in rebuilding Syria's power generation capacity, roads, ports and other damaged infrastructure.   

Syria has signed a $7-billion power deal with Qatar and an $800-million agreement with UAE-based port company DP World in recent months. US energy firms are also set to draw up a master plan for the country's energy sector.   

In April, Saudi Arabia and Qatar announced they would pay off Syria's World Bank arrears, opening up the possibility of new lending. 

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Business

China Says Hopes to Boost Trade Cooperation with US

A street cleaner walks by food delivery riders gather outside restaurants waiting for their online orders, in Beijing, China, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP)
A street cleaner walks by food delivery riders gather outside restaurants waiting for their online orders, in Beijing, China, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP)
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China Says Hopes to Boost Trade Cooperation with US

A street cleaner walks by food delivery riders gather outside restaurants waiting for their online orders, in Beijing, China, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP)
A street cleaner walks by food delivery riders gather outside restaurants waiting for their online orders, in Beijing, China, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP)

China wishes to strengthen economic cooperation with the United States to avoid "vicious competition", commerce minister Wang Wentao told US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, according to a readout released on Friday.

The two met on Thursday on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial conference in Cameroon's capital, less than two months ahead of US President Donald Trump's planned visit to Beijing.

"China is willing to strengthen multilateral and regional economic and trade cooperation with the United States," Wang told Greer, according to a statement by the Beijing's Ministry of Commerce.

The two powers must "properly handle the relationship between competition and cooperation" and "avoid vicious competition," he said.

The world's two largest economies were locked in a bitter trade battle last year before agreeing to a truce in October.

High-level talks in Paris this month between US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng also helped to ease tensions.

Nevertheless, issues including US tariffs, a trade balance in China's favor, and US restrictions on exports of advanced technologies continue to threaten relations.

Wang expressed "grave concerns" on Thursday regarding recently announced US trade investigations signaling the possibility of fresh tariffs.

Washington's trade investigations target 60 economies, including China, and will look into "failures to take action on forced labor" and whether these burden or restrict US commerce.

The White House has said Trump will visit Beijing on May 14-15, with the timing postponed by several weeks as a result of the war in the Middle East.

Business

Dollar Rides Haven Demand as Middle East Talks Ring Hollow

An electronic panel displays US Dollar currency symbol at an exchange office in Podolsk, outside Moscow, Russia, 26 March 2026. (EPA)
An electronic panel displays US Dollar currency symbol at an exchange office in Podolsk, outside Moscow, Russia, 26 March 2026. (EPA)
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Dollar Rides Haven Demand as Middle East Talks Ring Hollow

An electronic panel displays US Dollar currency symbol at an exchange office in Podolsk, outside Moscow, Russia, 26 March 2026. (EPA)
An electronic panel displays US Dollar currency symbol at an exchange office in Podolsk, outside Moscow, Russia, 26 March 2026. (EPA)

The dollar hovered near multi-month peaks on Friday as investors sought safety in the shadow of an intensifying Middle East war and mounting doubts over any path to de-escalation.

Markets were on edge following another rollercoaster week as US President Donald Trump again extended a deadline for striking Iran's energy facilities into April, even as Washington and Tehran offered starkly conflicting accounts of diplomatic progress.

The Pentagon is also looking at sending up to 10,000 additional ground troops to the Middle East, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, doing little to bolster investor hopes ‌of an imminent ‌end to the war.

That kept the dollar bid ‌as ⁠investors flocked to ⁠the safe-haven currency and ramped up expectations of a US rate hike by the year-end, owing to the inflationary pulse from higher-for-longer energy prices.

The yen, on the other hand, was left on the cusp of 160 per dollar and stood at 159.58. The euro was nursing losses and tacked on 0.1% to $1.1540, while sterling was little changed at $1.3339.

"It doesn't look like the conflict will end anytime soon," said Carol Kong, a ⁠currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "The dollar is king while ‌this conflict lasts."

"If we're right about this ‌conflict being protracted, I think oil prices will just keep rising and it will ‌push the dollar higher, at the expense of net energy importers like the Japanese ‌yen and the euro," she added.

The darkening market mood sent the risk-sensitive Australian dollar down to a two-month trough, though it later rebounded and traded 0.2% higher at $0.6903. The New Zealand dollar languished near its lowest level since January and last stood at $0.5769.

Against a basket ‌of currencies, the dollar was marginally weaker at 99.83, but still on track for a 2.2% rise this month, which would ⁠mark its ⁠biggest gain since July last year.

Investors are now pricing in an over 40% chance of a 25-basis-point rate hike from the Federal Reserve by September, according to CME Fedwatch tool, in a sharp reversal from more than 50 bps worth of easing expected before the war.

The Bank of England and the European Central Bank are also seen tightening policy, with the hawkish sea change in rate expectations hammering bonds and sending yields rising.

"A more prolonged disruption to energy supplies would deliver a larger hit to activity that would meet most definitions of a global recession and prompt a broader monetary tightening cycle," said analysts at Capital Economics in a note.

Yields on US Treasuries edged slightly higher on Friday, following a sharp rise overnight, with the two-year yield at 3.9899%. The benchmark 10-year yield was up about 1 bp to 4.4278%.

Business

Oil Drops as Trump Pauses Iran Strikes, but Stock Traders Nervous

Donald trump said he had pushed back the deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz once again following a request from Tehran. IRIB TV/AFP
Donald trump said he had pushed back the deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz once again following a request from Tehran. IRIB TV/AFP
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Oil Drops as Trump Pauses Iran Strikes, but Stock Traders Nervous

Donald trump said he had pushed back the deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz once again following a request from Tehran. IRIB TV/AFP
Donald trump said he had pushed back the deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz once again following a request from Tehran. IRIB TV/AFP

Oil prices fell Friday after Donald Trump again pushed back a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, though most equities also dropped as traders shrugged at the news following a series of conflicting messaging from the White House.

The US president had warned last Saturday he would obliterate Iran’s energy sites if it did not unblock the crucial waterway within 48 hours but pushed that back five days citing positive peace talks, which Tehran denied had taken place.

But after days of strikes by both sides and mixed reports of negotiations -- including the trading of multi-point demands -- he announced Thursday that he would again delay the attacks to April 6 after a request from Tehran.

"Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well," Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

"As per Iranian Government request... I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time," he posted.

Trump had earlier denied he was desperate for a deal to end the war, despite the Iranian republic's cool response to an American peace plan and fears the spike in oil prices would fan inflation, said AFP.

Trump later told a cabinet meeting Iran had allowed 10 oil tankers passage through the Strait of Hormuz -- through which about a fifth of world oil and gas pass -- to show it was serious about talks.

The Iranian news agency Tasnim said the country's response to Washington's 15-point plan to end the war "was officially sent last night through intermediaries, and Iran is awaiting the other side's response".

The report, citing an unnamed official, said officials had called for an end to US-Israeli attacks on Iran and Tehran-backed groups elsewhere in the region.

It also called for war reparations and Iran's "sovereignty" over the Strait of Hormuz be respected.

However, Trump's announcement came as the Wall Street Journal cited Department of Defense officials as saying the Pentagon was considering sending as many as 10,000 extra ground troops to the Middle East.

Oil prices fell more than one percent Friday, though that only partially pared the previous day's surge amid growing anxiety that the conflict will last far longer than first thought.

Brent is up almost 50 percent since the war began on February 28, while West Texas Intermediate has risen around 40 percent.

Equities struggled following hefty losses in Wall Street.

Tokyo and Seoul, which had been the standout performers in the first two months of the year, were among the biggest losers, while Hong Kong, Sydney, Wellington, Taipei Jakarta and Manila were also sharply lower.

Shanghai and Singapore fluctuated.

Investors are also increasingly skeptical about the messaging from the White House, with Trump often flipping between threats and talk of peace.

"A ten-day extension sounds like breathing room, but in market terms, it feels more like a trader rolling a losing position forward, hoping the next candle delivers what the last one refused to give," said SPI Asset Management's Stephen Innes referring to an investors analysis tool.

"Time has been purchased, not clarity. And the market knows the difference."

And National Australia Bank's Ray Attrill said: "Whether peace talks are taking place between the US and Iran remains debatable, Iran insisting that exchanges of letters via a friendly intermediary (presumed to be Pakistan) does not constitute talks."

Meanwhile, the World Trade Organization warned the global trading system was experiencing the "worst disruptions in the past 80 years", while the World Bank said it was prepared to provide immediate financial assistance to emerging market countries.

That came as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development warned US inflation could hit more than four percent this year as a result of the spike in crude prices. That compares with its previous projection of 2.8 percent.

The prospect of another spike in the cost of living led several Federal Reserve officials to express concern about the outlook for the world's top economy and suggested interest rates were unlikely to come down any time soon.

With the economic impact worsening, governments around the world are being forced to act.

Spain approved a sweeping $5.8 billion package including steep cuts to energy taxes, while Poland's prime minister announced a series of measures to address soaring fuel costs, including reduced taxes and price ceilings.

And South Korea said it will roll out a $17 billion "wartime" supplementary budget and expand fuel tax cuts.