It’s business as usual for Saudi Arabia despite no-shows by CEOs

Despite some corporate heavyweights pulling out of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) 2018 in Riyadh, there were indications of interest among business leaders and officials seeking to do more business with Saudi Arabia.

Several representatives and c-level executives from companies  from around the world said they were looking to do business inside the Kingdom, due to the size of its economy and growing youth population. 

Saudi finance minister Mohammed Al Jadaan on Tuesday met with the CEO of HSBC Global Banking & Markets to discuss investment opportunities and collaboration, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030.

The minister also met with the Deputy Chairman & CEO MENA of MUFG, Japan’s largest bank, to discuss aspects of cooperation and investment opportunities, according to the ministry’s official Twitter account.

In addition, Mike Spanos, PepsiCo Chief Executive Officer, Asia, Middle East and North Africa, called on the minister to discuss investment opportunities in Saudi Arabia.

The first day of the FII saw the signing of more than 25 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and megadeals with a total value of $50 billion, ushering huge investments in energy and infrastructure sectors.

The MoUs signed included diverse sectors from localization, energy supply chain, transportation, industrialization, etc.

Another big ticket announcement was the US electric car manufacturer Lucid Motors saying it will use the Public Investment Fund's (PIF) over $1 billion in funding to accelerate production as well as launch Lucid Air in 2020.

"We closed that deal literally over five weeks ago, and that will allow us to push Lucid Air production, set up our dealer network and launch the vehicle in 2020," Derek Jenkins, vice president - design, Lucid, told Argaam in an exclusive interview on Tuesday.

As global investors eye investment and partnership opportunities in Saudi Arabia, Russia has a strong presence at the summit this year, with a delegation led by the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF).

“We are all excited about Saudi Arabia's economy and opportunities. We believe this conference will generate a lot of other opportunities in technology, infrastructure and many other sectors," says Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian wealth fund.

The Saudi market is “more attractive” for investment now than three or four years ago, and many Russian companies are looking to enter the Kingdom, he noted, speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the conference.

Commenting on Saudi Arabia’s investment outlook, Cyril Widdershoven, Director VEROCY, geopolitical and financial analyst, MENA region/Turkey, told Argaam, “For the Saudi economy, the main current issue is still oil prices and OPEC Russia. Strong oil prices will keep the interest strong. Iran sanctions also could soon take over headlines.”