Business & Money | Friday 21 October, 2016 4:36 am |

Saudi Arabia and Portugal have signed a cooperation agreement following the Third Saudi-Portuguese Joint Committee meeting at the Royal Conference Palace in Riyadh on Wednesday.
The accord to improve bilateral relations was signed by Minister of Commerce and Investment Majid Al-Qassabi and Portuguese Minister of Defense José Alberto Azeredo Lopes.
The two-day conference focused on increasing the volume of trade between the two countries and promoting their bilateral cooperation. The sessions also highlighted the most prominent investment opportunities for achieving the objectives of the Saudi Vision 2030.
The joint committee also discussed ways for the two countries to increase cooperation with the private sector in the fields of industry, modern technology, software applications, solar energy, research and technology, nanotechnology, knowledge generation, health, agriculture, fisheries, and more.
Bilateral trade was worth SR3543 million in 2015.
Following the signing ceremony, Al-Qassabi recalled that the two countries have enjoyed friendly relations for a long time which eventually culminated in a joint agreement to enhance existing relations.
The minister also explained that the Vision 2030 is based on Islamic values, robust investment and the importance of the Kingdom’s geographical and strategic location in the region. The Kingdom, he said, is keen on private sector participation in achieving its goals which would eventually provide employment opportunities for local youth.
According to Vision 2030, he added, the Kingdom is eager to promote trade and investment cooperation with various countries around the world and search for best practices and methods in this area to learn from others’ experiences and create a conducive environment to encourage the private sector and to attract foreign investment into the country. 
The minister hoped that the new agreement would open up new areas of cooperation between the private sectors of the two countries. "We have plenty of opportunities that could be harnessed for mutual benefit,” Al-Qassabi said. 
Minister Lopez mentioned that the Kingdom is a key partner for Portugal, and has been so for several years. "Financial services, banking sectors and the development of small and medium sized enterprises are viable areas where the two countries could successfully carry out new deals following the signing of the agreement," he concluded.
Earlier in Jeddah, Portuguese Ambassador Manuel Carvalho said Saudi Arabia and Portugal have seen a lot of positive developments within the relationship in all fields in recent years. Carvalho said Portugal has a desire to push trade and investment relations with the Kingdom to the highest level, with common interests that bind the two countries together.