Saudi Ministry of Commerce spots 10 priority areas in trade for 2023

The reforms would touch upon consumer protection, commercial registration, trade names, commercial transactions, mediation and the controls for establishing government firms. (Shutterstock)
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Updated 09 April 2023
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Saudi Ministry of Commerce spots 10 priority areas in trade for 2023

RIYADH: The Saudi Ministry of Commerce has earmarked 10 priority projects in the trade and investment sector this year amid efforts to review and upgrade regulations and legislation in order, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

This move will help the Kingdom achieve the Saudi Vision 2030 objective of providing an attractive investment environment for local and international investors and enhancing the business sector’s regional and global competitiveness.

According to the news agency, the reforms would touch upon consumer protection, commercial registration, trade names, commercial transactions, mediation and the controls for establishing government firms.

The reforms will also encompass the family business charter, the corporate governance regulations, the commercial registration system implementing rules, and the trade names system implementing regulations.

The Ministry of Commerce announced these plans in its quarterly trade bulletin to support investors and entrepreneurs in making investment decisions in various economic sectors and activities based on a transparent methodology and an integrated vision to encourage diversity in commerce.

The emphasis underlines commercial activity as one of the main components of the national economy, which clocked an impressive growth of 7.8 percent last year.

This priority also cements the success of the legislative environment, facilitating procedures for business startups, elevating competitive indicators and making the business sector in Saudi Arabia attractive to the world.

The trade bulletin highlights the most prominent growth indicators in various activities and sectors, the volume of change in the records of companies and institutions, and the highest sectors that witnessed remarkable growth.

It also prepares the economy for promising sectors such as artificial intelligence technologies, computer programming, market research and opinion polls, movie production, cities, entertainment, games, hotel activities, tourism and travel.

Additionally, the bulletin also records the size of the industry and export-related data in the Kingdom, besides tracking the growth of the e-commerce sector in the Kingdom, data on the participation of women in the business, the development of financing small and medium enterprises and the contributions of legislation in improving the attractiveness of the business sector as a whole.


Closing Bell: Saudi main index extends gains as market opens wider to foreign investment

Updated 02 February 2026
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Closing Bell: Saudi main index extends gains as market opens wider to foreign investment

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rose on Monday, gaining 153.61 points, or 1.38 percent, to close at 11,321.09.

The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR5.85 billion ($1.56 billion), as 207 of the listed stocks advanced, while 55 retreated.

The MSCI Tadawul Index increased, up 21.20 points or 1.41 percent, to close at 1,524.18.

The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu gained 278.13 points, or 1.17 percent, to close at 24,013.03. This comes as 43 of the listed stocks advanced, while 29 retreated.

The best-performing stock was Saudi Pharmaceutical Industries and Medical Appliances Corp., with its share price surging by 7.26 percent to SR28.94.

Other top performers included Rasan Information Technology Co., which saw its share price rise by 6.51 percent to SR144, and Knowledge Economic City, which saw a 6.25 percent increase to SR13.09.

On the downside, the worst performer of the day was Najran Cement Co., whose share price fell by 2.11 percent to SR6.49.

Almasane Alkobra Mining Co. and Saudi Cable Co. also saw declines, with their shares dropping by 2 percent and 1.88 percent to SR103.10 and SR166.80, respectively.

On the announcement front, Riyad Bank has announced its annual financial results for 2025, with the total income from special commission of financing reaching SR24.1 billion, while net income from special commission of financing amounted to SR12 billion.

In a statement on Tadawul, the bank said: “Net income increased by 11.7 percent mainly due to an increase in total operating income and a decrease in total operating expenses.”

The bank further noted that the rise in total operating income was primarily driven by increased revenue from fees and commissions, trading activities, special commissions, gains on non-trading investments, and other operating sources. This growth was partially tempered by declines in exchange and dividend income.

“Net provision of expected credit losses and other losses decreased by 15.8 percent due to a decrease in impairment charge of credit losses and impairment charge for other financial assets, partially offset by an increase in impairment charge for investments,” it added.

RIBL’s share price closed at SR18.18 on the main market, marking a 1.43 percent increase.