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Saudi Arabia Advances Vision 2030 with Manufacturing, Localization, Economic Growth

Saudi Arabia Advances Vision 2030 with Manufacturing, Localization, Economic Growth
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Saudi Arabia Advances Vision 2030 with Manufacturing, Localization, Economic Growth

Saudi Arabia Advances Vision 2030 with Manufacturing, Localization, Economic Growth

As Saudi Arabia celebrated its 95th National Day on Tuesday, the Kingdom is showcasing rapid economic reforms designed to cement its role as a global business hub.

Powered by its Vision 2030 diversification strategy, Riyadh has rolled out regulatory reforms, investment incentives and talent programs that are attracting multinational firms. International companies are expanding amid localization and manufacturing projects, while new visa categories are luring foreign expertise to support ambitions to turn the Kingdom into a regional hub for technology, innovation and sustainability.

Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy is forecast to grow 4.3% in 2025, supported by strong domestic demand and credit growth, Jadwa Investment said.

Technology hub

Digital infrastructure, flexible regulations and research incentives have made the kingdom a magnet for global technology players.

Chinese PC maker Lenovo said Saudi Arabia had established itself as a global hub combining technology, innovation and sustainability under Vision 2030.

Giovanni Di Filippo, the company’s vice president and general manager in Saudi Arabia, told Asharq Al-Awsat the firm had set up its regional headquarters in Riyadh and broken ground on a sustainable manufacturing facility that will produce millions of “Made in Saudi” computers and servers by 2026.

Through partnerships such as a recent tie-up with state-backed tech and industrial firm Alat, Lenovo aims to create jobs, build local skills, strengthen supply chains and bolster the kingdom’s digital economy.

Alat, launched by the Public Investment Fund in February 2024, seeks to establish Saudi Arabia as a global hub for sustainable industries and clean energy.

Labor market reforms

Alongside investments, Saudi Arabia is overhauling its labor market to attract global talent while training nationals.

Human capital is at the heart of the transformation, said Haider Hussain, managing partner for the Middle East and North Africa at immigration consultancy Fragomen.

He cited new visa categories, long-term residency pathways and human resources policies that have opened the door to international talent, alongside heavy investment in training young Saudis for a diversified economy.

He added that reforms in labor mobility reflect a strategic commitment to put people at the center of national transformation.

Future sectors

Saudi Arabia is also moving into frontier industries, including space. Martijn Blanken, chief executive of New Space Group, said the sector was a vital growth driver that boosts the Kingdom’s global standing in innovation.

He pledged to support local satellite services and space industries through technology transfer, localization and training to help Saudi Arabia become a leading player in the field in line with Vision 2030.

Investor appeal

Analysts say Saudi Arabia’s business environment is increasingly attractive thanks to digital infrastructure, special economic zones, flexible regulations, foreign ownership laws and training programs to boost local competitiveness.

The localization push is intersecting with rising foreign investment to create integrated supply chains and advanced manufacturing capacity, strengthening the Kingdom’s role as a regional hub for emerging technologies.

Economic outlook

The International Monetary Fund recently raised its forecast for Saudi Arabia’s real GDP growth to 3.6% in 2025, with momentum expected to continue in 2026, citing strong non-oil activity, historically low inflation and record-low unemployment.

With mega-projects underway and partnerships with global firms expanding, Saudi Arabia is pressing ahead with its long-term goal: building a diversified and sustainable economy.

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Business

UK Wage Growth Slows to Weakest in 5 Years

FILED - 17 February 2016, United Kingdom, London: A Job Centre Plus is pictured in this file photo from February 17, 2016. Photo: Philip Toscano/PA Wire/dpa
FILED - 17 February 2016, United Kingdom, London: A Job Centre Plus is pictured in this file photo from February 17, 2016. Photo: Philip Toscano/PA Wire/dpa
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UK Wage Growth Slows to Weakest in 5 Years

FILED - 17 February 2016, United Kingdom, London: A Job Centre Plus is pictured in this file photo from February 17, 2016. Photo: Philip Toscano/PA Wire/dpa
FILED - 17 February 2016, United Kingdom, London: A Job Centre Plus is pictured in this file photo from February 17, 2016. Photo: Philip Toscano/PA Wire/dpa

British wages rose at their slowest pace since late 2020 in the three months to January, according to official data which also suggested a weakening in employment might have bottomed out before the start of the war in the Middle East.

The figures would normally boost bets on the Bank of England cutting interest rates. But the central bank is widely expected to signal at 1200 GMT that it is waiting to see the impact of the war on Britain's economy before deciding its next move.

Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG UK, said Thursday's data would not change the BoE Monetary Policy Committee's immediate views.

"Priorities have shifted, with MPC members set to turn their attention to the new upside risks to the inflation outlook," she said. "This could see interest rates staying higher for longer, raising the prospect of a more pronounced loosening in the labor market over the coming months."

Last ⁠week ONS data ⁠showed zero growth in Britain's economy in January, but a surge in oil prices means an expected fall in inflation back towards its 2% target in April may prove more fleeting than the BoE had hoped.

The Office for National Statistics said regular earnings, which exclude bonuses, rose by 3.8% in the November-to-January period, the smallest increase since the three months to November 2020 and down from 4.1% in the final quarter of 2025.

Economists polled by Reuters had mostly expected regular pay growth of 4.0%. Total pay growth, which includes bonuses, showed a similar trend, slowing to 3.9%.

The ONS data also ⁠showed Britain's unemployment rate - which is calculated from a survey that the ONS is still overhauling - held at 5.2%, its highest since the COVID-19 pandemic period but below a median forecast in the Reuters poll for a rise to 5.3%.

Unemployment for 16-24 year olds - a key focus of government concern - edged down to 16.0% from an 11-year high of 16.1% in the final quarter of 2025.

Separate, more timely tax office data, also released on Thursday, showed the number of people in payrolled employment rose by a provisional estimate of 20,000 people between January and February.

In January, payrolls rose by a revised estimate of 6,000 compared with a provisional estimate of a fall of 11,000.

The latest data and revisions make it the first time that there have been three consecutive monthly rises in payrolled employment since May 2024.

"Today's labor market data will make for some positive reading. After nearly a year of disappointment, signs of stabilization are emerging," Sanjay Raja, ⁠chief UK economist at Deutsche ⁠Bank, said.

Until this month, the BoE had been trying to gauge whether lingering inflation heat in the labor market or a weakening of hiring in recent months posed the bigger risk to the economy.

But new inflation pressures have emerged, caused by the jump in energy prices after the start of the war in the Middle East.

The BoE is expected to keep borrowing costs on hold on Thursday at the end of the MPC's March meeting which, until recently, had been expected to result in a quarter-point rate cut.

The ONS data showed private sector annual regular wage growth - a measure of inflation heat closely watched by the BoE - slowed to 3.3% in the three months to January from 3.4% in the three months to December, also its weakest since late 2020.

Last month, the BoE said pay growth needed to be around 3.25% to keep inflation at its 2% target.

Deutsche Bank's Raja said the figures showed wage growth was slowing by slightly more than the BoE had forecast, offering some relief from the worries about a new energy price shock coming from the US-Israeli war on Iran.

"This, we think, can allow the MPC to remain cool-headed as we brace for another inflation wave - at least for now," he said.

Business

Morgan Stanley Joins Peers in Pushing Back Fed Cut Forecasts on Inflation Fears

FILE PHOTO: Morgan Stanley logo appears in this illustration taken December 1, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Morgan Stanley logo appears in this illustration taken December 1, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Morgan Stanley Joins Peers in Pushing Back Fed Cut Forecasts on Inflation Fears

FILE PHOTO: Morgan Stanley logo appears in this illustration taken December 1, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Morgan Stanley logo appears in this illustration taken December 1, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Morgan Stanley on Thursday joined Goldman Sachs and Barclays in pushing back its forecast for the US ​Federal Reserve's next interest rate cut to September from June after the central bank flagged inflationary risks amid the Middle East conflict.

The Wall Street brokerage now expects quarter-point reductions in September and December, revising its earlier forecast of reductions in June and September.

"In the near term, ‌higher energy prices ‌will push up overall inflation, ​but ‌it ⁠is ​too soon ⁠to know the scope and duration of the potential effects on the economy," Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in a press conference after the central bank kept interest rates unchanged on Wednesday.

New projections show that Fed policymakers as a ⁠group anticipate the Federal Open Market Committee ‌will cut the policy rate ‌by a quarter percentage point ​before the end ‌of the year, while major Wall Street firms ‌still expect two rate cuts.

"A cautious Fed means delay. The primary risk to our view remains that rate cuts come later or not at all," Morgan ‌Stanley strategists said in a note.
"In the other direction, a second-round surge ⁠in oil ⁠prices could mean activity and labor markets weaken, prompting cuts."

Oil prices have climbed above $100 a barrel due to the ongoing Middle East conflict that has led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key trade route that handles almost a fifth of the global oil trade.

Traders are currently pricing in over a 70% chance that the US central bank will ​hold rates steady ​in September, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Business

Shell: Attack on Ras Laffan in Qatar Damaged Pearl GTL Facility

(FILES) This picture shows the Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's principal site for production of liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquid, administrated by Qatar Petroleum, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Doha, on February 6, 2017. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)
(FILES) This picture shows the Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's principal site for production of liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquid, administrated by Qatar Petroleum, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Doha, on February 6, 2017. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)
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Shell: Attack on Ras Laffan in Qatar Damaged Pearl GTL Facility

(FILES) This picture shows the Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's principal site for production of liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquid, administrated by Qatar Petroleum, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Doha, on February 6, 2017. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)
(FILES) This picture shows the Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's principal site for production of liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquid, administrated by Qatar Petroleum, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Doha, on February 6, 2017. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP)

Shell said Wednesday's attack on Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City caused damage to the Pearl GTL (gas-to-liquids) facility, adding the fire was ⁠quickly put out, there ⁠were no reported injuries and Pearl is now in ⁠a "safe state.”

Shell has a 100% interest in Pearl GTL in Qatar, which has capacity to process up to 1.6 billion cubic ⁠feet ⁠per day of wellhead gas, converting it into 140,000 bpd of gas-to-liquids.