RIYADH: Saudi-Italian business ties have been strengthened after an agreement was signed to improve access to each other’s markets. The Federation of Saudi Chambers and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, Italy’s national promotional institution, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Wednesday to strengthen economic ties and expand market access for businesses in both countries. The partnership will support Saudi and Italian enterprises, with trade between the Kingdom and the European country standing at $12 billion in 2025. The MoU was signed in the Federation of Saudi Chambers offices in Riyadh by the organization's Secretary General Sultan Al-Musallam, and CEO and General Manager of CDP Dario Scannapieco. Speaking to Arab News, Al-Musallam said: “We see non-oil exports from Saudi Arabia growing to Italy, which is a great indication of Saudi businesses opening up the Italian market and potentially the European zone as a whole.” He added: “What we discussed today with the CDP from the Italian side is the prioritized sectors that we need to focus on in the next five years, including infrastructure, telecommunication, digital infrastructure,  including data centers, and tourism and culture.”  Al-Musallam said that there are over 100 Italian startups operating in the Kingdom with deployment of around €180 million.  “We want to even grow it further in the upcoming years,” he said, adding that the partnership aims to encourage joint ventures between Italian and Saudi startups in order to boost the local entrepreneurial ecosystem. The agreement will also provide companies in both nations with expanded access and resources to establish and scale operations across each other’s markets, fostering reciprocal investment opportunities in Saudi Arabia and Italy. SMEs playing key role Speaking to Arab News, CDP's Scannapieco said: “We we will be relaunching and strengthening a digital business matching platform that will put Italian companies, SMEs in contact with Saudi SMEs. "This is a good form of cooperation because the Italian economy is made, especially by SMEs, and the same situation is here in Saudi Arabia.” He added: “We as a Cassa Depositi e Prestiti can support Italian companies when they come here to Saudi Arabia through our company Simest. We have already supported more than 100 companies, both through providing them loans but also with equity.”   Founded in 1850, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti is Italy’s National Promotional Institution body responsible for overseeing long-term investments at local, regional and national level. The signing took plac during a business roundtable chaired by Emad Al-Fakhari, vice chairman of the Federation of Saudi Chambers, with members of the Saudi-Italian Business Council, business leaders from the Kingdom, and representatives of the institutional and financial sectors. Speaking in the roundtable discussions, Al-Musallam said: “It’s quite rare to find a country that has the people-to-people, the business-to-business and the government-to-government all ticking the box and this is happening between Saudi and Italy; all we need to do is translate into better trade bilaterally and better investment, and we are in the right direction.” In his remarks, Kamil Al-Munajjid, chairman of the Saudi Italian Business Council, said: “The agreement is a direct result of the historic meeting in AlUla in January 2025 between His Royal Highness Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.”  He added: “They elevated our relations to a strategic partnership, with economic cooperation as a central pillar. Today, we take a practical step toward fulfilling that ambition.”  In November, the Saudi-Italian Business Council will convene in Rome to continue cooperation and sign an agreement with Simest.