Saudi startup Riyadh Air said on Tuesday it had ordered 60 Airbus narrowbody A321-family jets as it prepares to start operations in 2025.

The deal, signed at the Future Investment Initiative forum in Riyadh, brings to 132 the total number of jets ordered by Saudi Arabia's newest carrier, which last year ordered 39 Boeing 787 Dreamliners with options for 33 more.

The A321 deal would be worth around $4 billion after typical discounts, based on estimated delivery prices from Cirium Ascend.

It follows months of speculation about the order after a report that it had chosen at least 100 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.

The airline had cautioned that it was in the midst of a sequence of potential orders and that it was studying both Boeing and Airbus for the next narrowbody purchase.

(Reporting by Yousef Saba, Pesha Magid; Writing by Dominique Vidalon, tim Hepher; Editing by Makini Brice and Richard Lough)