Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi, Saudi Minister of Commerce, met in Riyadh with British Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds and his delegation. This meeting aimed to enhance economic ties under Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and discussed economic reforms and partnership opportunities.
Talks focused on expanding British business operations in Saudi Arabia, particularly in priority sectors and innovation-driven startups. This visit marks Reynolds’ first official foreign trip since taking office, highlighting efforts to strengthen Saudi-British economic relations.
The discussions align with the goals of the Saudi-British Strategic Partnership Council, co-chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, to boost mutual trade and investment. Al-Qasabi noted the progress of 79 initiatives across 13 economic sectors, with bilateral trade growing over 30% from 2018 to 2023, reaching $103 billion.
Currently, 1,139 British investors operate in Saudi Arabia, benefiting from recent economic reforms. In May, Riyadh hosted the GREAT Futures Initiative Conference, attracting 450 British business leaders and resulting in 13 agreements.
After the meeting, Reynolds visited the Saudi Center for Economic Business to learn about services facilitating business operations in the Kingdom.