Saudi Arabia signs $1.3bn housing deals with China

SPA

Saudi Arabia has signed 12 infrastructure development agreements with Chinese companies and banks worth more than SAR5 billion ($1.33 billion).

The agreements include five housing-related projects, state-run SPA reported, citing the housing ministry.

Speaking at the Saudi-Chinese Business Forum in Beijing, Saudi housing minister Majid Al Hogail said the kingdom offers significant investment opportunities in the housing sector.

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The country plans to construct over 300,000 residential units across 17 Saudi cities, covering an area of more than 150 million square metres and valued at SAR100 billion.

He invited Chinese companies to invest in Saudi Arabia’s real estate sector, disclosing the ministry is currently working with several Chinese companies on housing projects worth SAR3 billion.

Earlier, the minister discussed investment opportunities across several Saudi cities with officials from the Export-Import Bank of China (Exim Bank), China Development Bank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia remains one of China’s strongest global trade partners, leading Chinese engagement in the construction sector during the first half of 2023, according to a recent Belt and Road Initiative investment report.

Of 45 countries receiving Chinese financing and investment in the first six months of 2023, the kingdom had the highest construction volume at $3.8 billion, followed by Tanzania with $2.8 billion and the UAE at $1.2 billion, the report by the Green Finance & Development Center at Fudan University in Shanghai showed.