On Wednesday, China’s state-run Global Times highlighted President Donald Trump’s mention of more than $4 billion in agricultural contracts signed between China and Saudi Arabia the previous day, marking significant agreements in Riyadh.
The newspaper reported that over 70 cooperation agreements have been signed by companies and agencies from both China and Saudi Arabia, covering diverse areas like green technology, intelligent equipment production, and cross-border supply chains.
This announcement originated from the “Sub Council” of the China Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) in Beijing. Established in the 1950s, the CCPIT aims to facilitate business transactions between Chinese companies and their foreign counterparts.
According to the article, “China and Saudi Arabia have strong compatibility in the agriculture sector, presenting significant potential for cooperation in infrastructure development, agricultural production and processing, smart agriculture, and breeding.”
Global Times noted that Saudi Arabia stands as China’s largest trading partner, while China is also the biggest partner for Saudi Arabia. The bilateral trade has surpassed $107 billion, with numerous partnerships, especially in joint projects for desalination plants.
Additionally, Trump’s recently announced arms deal with Saudi Arabia is valued at $142 billion, which is notably greater than the annual trade between the two countries. Thus, it isn’t surprising that there’s much interest in showcasing major contracts with Saudi Arabia.
Beijing doesn’t seem particularly concerned about its ties with Riyadh; those relations have been built on a strong foundation over many years, particularly driven by China’s demand for fossil fuels. Saudi Arabia is China’s second-largest supplier of crude oil, following Russia, providing around 50 million barrels per month, even amid the economic impacts of the pandemic.
China swiftly engaged with Saudi Arabia when Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) unveiled “Saudi Vision 2030” a decade ago, which aimed to reduce the economy’s reliance on oil exports by attracting more foreign investment.
Meanwhile, President Trump has been keen to negotiate with China regarding access to advanced American semiconductor chips for Saudi Arabia, a move that raises concerns among analysts. They worry that such access might allow Saudi Arabia to connect with China’s restricted chips, while also helping the U.S. maintain a crucial lead in the AI sector.
On Tuesday, Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) announced a partnership to provide semiconductors to Humain, an AI company backed by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund.
The U.S. firms expressed that Trump’s initiative to export technology to Saudi Arabia could open massive new markets for them and bolster American efforts to dominate in AI. The energy demands of data centers necessary for AI projects could particularly benefit from Saudi Arabia’s abundant resources, and AMD anticipates a $10 billion network of powerful data centers spanning from Saudi Arabia to the U.S.
