Prince Mohammed said to plan overseas trip to attract investment

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is planning a trip later this month to France, the UK, and the US to attract foreign investment in several business sectors in the Kingdom, including aerospace, internet technologies and entertainment, Wall Street Journal reported.

The prince reportedly plans to meet with British Prime Minister Theresa May and discuss the listing of oil giant Saudi Aramco, among other matters, sources familiar with the matter said.

Prince Mohammed is also likely to go to Washington in early March and visit New York and Silicon Valley, although plans for the US trip are yet to be finalized, it was reported.

The Saudis will meet with executives of US oil companies during the visit.

The trip is aimed at shoring up Saudi Arabia’s image with investors, after some of the country’s business elite were arrested in a corruption crackdown in November last year.

The Kingdom has been looking to attract foreign investment through the privatization of various state-owned entities, as part of economic diversification measures announced in 2016 under the Vision 2030 initiative.

The reforms include the listing of 5 percent of Saudi Aramco, with the goal of raising $100 billion in what is expected to be the world’s largest initial public offering (IPO).