Saudi Arabian leader Mohammed bin Salman used a congratulatory phone call to assure US President Donald Trump that the kingdom would invest $600bn (SR2.25trn) in the US over the next four years, the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The leaders discussed opportunities for collaboration “to promote peace, security and stability in the Middle East, in addition to enhancing bilateral cooperation to combat terrorism”. Bin Salman highlighted the incoming administration’s “ability to create unprecedented economic prosperity and opportunity through anticipated reforms in the US”. The $600bn figure would be spread among investments and trade and could go “potentially beyond that”.
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Saudi Arabia’s main sovereign wealth fund (SWF), the Public Investment Fund (PIF), is one of the largest SWFs in the world. In a 2024 article, Reuters wrote that the PIF managed $925bn. While the fund is the main tool the kingdom uses for foreign investments, the press release did not specify where the funds would come from.
In the past few fears, lower oil prices and production have decreased revenue in Saudi Arabia and the government is projecting to run a deficit until 2027. Its flagship project, NEOM, has also faced cutbacks. In October an anonymous regional investor told CNBC that the kingdom was not in the same position it was in two years ago and that, while investments continue, it was being “more disciplined” and “more rational”. Domestic investments are also being more prioritised than in the past.
However, even if the $600bn figure isn’t reached, Bin Salman’s call suggests that the leaders will have a close relationship during the President’s second term.
Trump’s first foreign trip during his first term was to Saudi Arabia. After his inauguration on Monday, Trump told reporters that it had been his first trip “because they agreed to buy $450bn worth of our products”.
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By GlobalData“If Saudi Arabia wanted to buy another $450bn or $500bn, we’ll up it for all the inflation, I think I’d probably go,” he added.
After Trump left office in 2020, the PIF invested billions of dollars in the private equity funds of son-in-law Jared Kushner and former US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
Following the call with Trump, SPA reported that the Crown Prince held a call with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio where they discussed “the latest regional and international developments along with various issues of mutual interest”.
