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At least 49 investment deals have been signed in Saudi Arabia over the last few months that will create around 2,000 new jobs for the local economy, the kingdom's investment ministry said.
The deals, estimated to be worth at least $925 million, were signed during the second quarter of the year and included diverse sectors like manufacturing, real estate, ICT, tourism, entertainment, sports and entrepreneurship, according to the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia.
The transactions include a $133.3 million agreement between the Saudi Ports Authority and DP World to build a logistics park at Jeddah Islamic Port and a $37 million funding round led by global finance giant Mastercard into Saudi e-commerce firm HyperPay to expand Saudi's digital payment ecosystem.
MISA said a strategic agreement was also signed with pharmaceutical firm Novartis to boost the kingdom's biopharmaceutical capabilities, while another deal was closed for Aramco's Wa'ed Ventures to invest $50 million into Saudi fintech Wahed.
The second quarter also saw Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma'aden) signed a deal to build the world's largest solar-powered steam plant, which will be used to refine bauxite into alumina.
The deals are testament that global investors are interested in doing business with Saudi Arabia, according to Khalid Al-Falih, Minister of Investment.
"Despite global headwinds, we are seeing strong interest from global investors in diverse industries to partner with Saudi Arabia," Al-Falih said.
(Reporting by Cleofe Maceda; editing by Brinda Darasha)
