The China-Saudi Investment Conference was held in Beijing on December 12, 2023. Photo: Courtesy of China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products

The China-Saudi Investment Conference, which took place in Beijing on Tuesday, yielded fruitful outcomes, with government officials pledging to foster stronger economic and trade connections and businesses from both sides signing deals in sectors ranging from clean energy and agriculture to technology and healthcare.

The event, with about 600 participants, was held on the occasion of the six-day visit to China of Khalid Al-Falih, minister of investment of Saudi Arabia, an effort to further unleash cooperation potential with China, the country's largest trading partner since 2013.

Fahad Alomar, CEO of GroHome Precast Co based in Saudi Arabia, told the Global Times that it signed a contract at the event with China Civil Engineering Construction Co and holds good expectations for business cooperation.

The agreement, involving 1.3 billion Saudi riyals ($350 million) in investment, will see the construction and operation of a precast factory in Saudi Arabia, said Alomar. He said that the company also plans to bid on a rail project in Saudi Arabia valued at more than $20 billion.

"Thanks to the event, we had a great opportunity to meet different Chinese companies," Alomar said.

Saleh Al Katheer, group chief operating officer of Alkifah, which is an investment company based in Saudi Arabia, visited China along with the delegation.

Katheer told the Global Times the firm wants closer partnerships with Chinese companies. "We are hoping for more investment from Chinese companies to help build factories in our country," he said. 

In addition to investment, Chinese companies have technical skills and production capacity, which he considers are among the competitive advantages his firm intends to take advantage of in building closer ties with China and Chinese partners.

The economic structures of China and Saudi Arabia are highly complementary. China is a major energy importer with a high level of domestic manufacturing and a sound foundation. Saudi Arabia is rich in oil, gas and mineral resources, and its economic development is highly dependent on energy-related industries.

Bilateral trade stood at $116 billion in 2022, up 32.9 percent year-on-year, according to the General Administration of Customs of China.

Investment has guided and assisted China-Saudi Arabia economic and trade cooperation, enhancing the results of cooperation in processing and manufacturing, the digital economy, clean energy and tourism, among other fields, Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Li Fei said at the opening of the conference.

At the conference, Al-Falih welcomed more Chinese companies to invest in areas such as manufacturing, mining, logistics, the digital technology and healthcare.

Bilateral economic and trade ties are taking on a positive trend, with key agreements being signed in recent months.

China's Shenzhen Stock Exchange and Saudi Tadawul Group, operator of the Saudi Stock Exchange, agreed on financial cooperation in various areas, including environmental, social and corporate governance, fintech and a potential exchange-traded fund connect, the Shenzhen exchange announced on Monday.

Moreover, the People's Bank of China  and the Saudi Central Bank signed a three-year local currency swap agreement with a value of 50 billion yuan ($6.98 billion) or 26 billion Saudi riyals. It can be extended by mutual agreement, the PBC said on November 20.

The arrangement will strengthen financial cooperation, expand the use of both currencies and promote trade and investment, the statement said.