Investment Minister Leads High-Level Delegation To China To Advance Strategic Economic Ties

Investment Minister Leads High-Level Delegation to China to Advance Strategic Economic Ties

Riyadh, August (پاکستان پوائنٹ نیوز ‎‎‎ 24 أغسطس 2025ء) The visit takes place within the framework of the Saudi-Chinese High-Level Joint Committee, which receives close attention and follow-up from the leadership of both countries, through the Subcommittee on Trade, Investment, and Technology co-chaired by Minister Al-Falih from the Saudi side and China’s Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao. The subcommittee held its fifth meeting in mid-May 2025.

According to the Ministry of Investment, this visit reflects the strong momentum in Saudi-Chinese economic relations, with bilateral trade now exceeding $100 billion annually, making China the Kingdom’s largest trading partner. Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Kingdom increased from SAR24.1 billion in 2023 to SAR31.1 billion in 2024, marking a growth of 28.8%. Investment inflows rose from SAR3.2 billion to SAR8.6 billion in the same period, an increase of 163.9%, while net inflows surged to SAR7 billion, up 217.8%. These developments underscore the strength of the Saudi market and growing investor confidence. The largest share of Chinese investment is concentrated in manufacturing, alongside significant activity across other sectors such as financial services and insurance, construction, mining, technology, trade, infrastructure, and healthcare.

The delegation’s program includes high-level meetings with senior officials and investors in multiple Chinese cities. In Shanghai, discussions will focus on industrial and petrochemical value chains, while in Beijing, the emphasis will be on financial partnerships and cooperation with state-owned enterprises. The program also features strategic visits to key industrial facilities and participation in financial market activities in Hong Kong.

The visit builds on a series of recent successes in bilateral cooperation, most notably the Saudi-Chinese Investment Forum held in December 2023. The forum brought together more than 1,200 government and private sector representatives and resulted in the signing of over 60 memorandums of understanding across the sectors of energy, agriculture, tourism, mining, finance, logistics, infrastructure, technology, and healthcare.

In May 2024, Al-Falih also participated in the China-GCC Industrial and Investment Cooperation Forum, alongside more than 50 Saudi officials and business leaders.

These efforts are part of Saudi Arabia’s broader investment strategy to advance the goals of Vision 2030 by strengthening international partnerships, diversifying investments, and expanding cooperation across non-oil sectors.

The Saudi delegation includes representatives from the Ministry of Investment, the National Industrial Development Center, the Global Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (GSCRI), the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, the Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority, and the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (MODON).