Saudi finance minister says no immediate plans to transfer more funds to PIF

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Saudi Minister of Finance Mohammed al-Jadaan gestures as he speaks all through the Saudi Green Initiative Forum to focus on attempts by the world’s best oil exporter to tackle local weather change, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 23, 2021. REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri

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DUBAI, May perhaps 23 (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s finance minister claimed on Monday there had been no fast plans to transfer additional cash to the Community Expenditure Fund (PIF), the sovereign prosperity fund at the centre of the kingdom’s strategies to diversify its economic system away from oil.

The PIF manages above $600 billion in belongings, a figure that has doubled in about two decades.

“I believe there is no fast strategy to transfer any funds to PIF,” explained Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan, speaking at the World Economic Discussion board in Davos, Switzerland.

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In 2020, the PIF received a $40 billion injection from the central financial institution, which Jadaan stated at the time was carried out on an “excellent basis”.

In February this 12 months, Saudi Arabia transferred 4% of oil big Saudi Aramco’s shares, now worthy of $92 billion, to the PIF.

Jadaan reported Saudi Arabia would, in the very first quarter of subsequent calendar year, deploy its anticipated surplus from this calendar year the place it would have “the most good influence on the economic system”, including to the Nationwide Enhancement Fund, which supports private sector financial investment.

“So we will need to make sure we allocate enough amount of cash to them,” he mentioned. “We have possibilities to make investments with the PIF since they are truly making very good specials in their investments and accomplishing quite properly, both inside of Saudi and exterior,” he additional.

“And then you need to glance at, you know, your reserves. Is there likely medium-phrase external shocks (so) that you want to develop a lot more reserves, or what you have now is enough?”

Jadaan reiterated Saudi Arabia expects financial development of 7.4% this calendar year and said inflation was noticed reaching among 2.1% and 2.3% by the finish of 2022.

A cap on petrol prices when oil breaches $70 was supporting include inflation, he included.

“It was the stop of very last yr we froze the selling price escalation of gasoline for the inside financial system and households at $70. So everything earlier mentioned $70, the overall economy will not feel that heat.”

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Reporting by Saeed Azhar and Yousef Saba
Creating by Yousef Saba
Editing by Mark Potter

Our Expectations: The Thomson Reuters Trust Rules.

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