Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud addresses the opening ceremony of the 10th Arab-China Business Conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 11, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
Chinese and Arab entrepreneurs advancing business exchanges between their countries are contributing not only to the joint development of their nations but also to the world’s shared future, experts said at a regional trade forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The 10th Arab-China Business Conference – themed "Collaborating For Prosperity” – closed on June 12 with experts lauding the opportunities for cooperation between China and Arab nations.
In her speech at the conference, New Development Bank President Dilma Rousseff said that a new and important market-like energy is fast growing and creating the basis of a multipolar world.
Rousseff said the China-Saudi partnership can also inspire the Global South to expand internal and external regional trade, offering great possibilities to countries currently marginalized by the traditional international financial system
“China and Saudi Arabia have the potential to rewrite the rules of the global energy market, leading the way in diversifying currencies and embracing new models of economic collaboration,” said Rousseff, who was elected as president of the Shanghai-headquartered bank in March.
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She said the China-Saudi partnership can also inspire the Global South to expand internal and external regional trade, offering great possibilities to countries currently marginalized by the traditional international financial system.
The world economy, Rousseff said, is facing great uncertainty with high inflation and national monetary policies leading to a rise in interest rates and increased risk of recession in developed countries. This has intensified the volatility of both traditional currencies and crypto markets.
Developing countries are also bearing the severe consequences of these policies. To address the situation, she said the international community needed to “continue building a multipolar world where global forces are balanced”.
“We must deepen the movement of globalization by establishing specific regional ‘great dealers’, which will contribute to creating a new global economic order where developing and emerging economies have a strong and influential voice,” said Rousseff.
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“Their merging economies account for more than 50 percent of the global GDP in terms of purchasing power parity and will continue to grow in importance. The Arab world, as an important member of the developed world, possesses diverse resources and has achieved remarkable development, demonstrating enormous potential,” she added.
In a one-on-one panel, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited CEO Nicolas Aguzin noted that investors in the Middle East region are diversifying their investments as the world pivots toward Asia.
“Today if we take the top 10 sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East, it is about $4 trillion of investment capital that they have available. That is going to grow close to $10 trillion by 2030,” said Aguzin.
“Right now, a very small portion of that is invested in Asia, or 1 to 2 percent (of that is) in China. As it goes to $1 trillion, we think that more than 10 percent or 20 percent will be invested in China. Think about what that means. That’s between $1 and 2 trillion that will be reallocated in investments in that part of the world, which is massive,” he added.
At a panel titled “Financial Sector Powering Arab-China Business Growth”, Senior Managing Director of CIV and General Manager of CIC Janus Asset Management Company Wang Yan noted that the global economy was undergoing pressure from the United States and Europe.
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But movements in the fintech and artificial intelligence sectors, Wang said, have been helping the economy. She said they have welcomed the use of technology in the financial system to enable the financial sector to bring more advancement to society overall.
CEO and Executive President of Bank of China International Holdings Tong Li told the forum that the capital market in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has a lot of value for the Arab region
“We believe the movement of the fintech … We see improvement (in) experience in the fintech areas, especially in the Middle East. And (in) the new economic developments in Saudi Arabia, fintech has a more active role there. So, we will have more potential (with) entrepreneurs together in the Middle East to move this together,” said Wang.
CEO and Executive President of Bank of China International Holdings Tong Li told the forum that the capital market in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has a lot of value for the Arab region.
She said Hong Kong “is a bridge between China and the world” and that following its financial reforms since 2008 and new opportunities, like growing the Greater Bay Area, investors can expect that the Hong Kong capital market “will be more friendly” to new and innovative companies.
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Managing Director and Head of Asia and Australia Region of the China International Capital Corporation (CICC) Barry Chan said that people in the Middle East region “are very interested in China” and vice versa. But more efforts are needed for them to familiarize themselves with one another, he added.
“Hong Kong, being an international financial center for the region and for China, is a very good connection,” said Chan. “It may seem to be a big move to go into China directly… But Hong Kong is really a place you can consider. It practices common law, it doesn’t have foreign currency exchange restrictions.”
Beyond business, President of the Federation of Arab Businessman Hamdi Tabbaa told a one-on-one panel that he believes cooperation in education between China and Arab countries can go further given their “excellent relations”.
“I think China today is the main leader in the world, not only in the Arab countries, in its economic field,” Tabbaa said, also noting China’s cultural capital.
