Chinese firms account for 50 pct of FDI in Kuwait, says Al-Roudhan
Establishing firm overseas to trade petroleum products ‘suspicious’
KUWAIT CITY, Sept 5, (Agencies): Minister of Commerce and Industry Khaled Nasser Al-Roudhan said Kuwait was able to attract in the last three years more than USD seven billion in foreign direct investment (FDI). Chinese companies account for nearly half of this figure, Al-Roudhan said in statements to KUNA before leaving for the People’s Republic of China on an official visit later Tuesday.
At the behest of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Kuwait works to strengthen the economic cooperation with China and lure more FDI through improvement of the industrial sector and the business atmosphere, he said.
“We emphasis on helping the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to contribute to economic growth and create more jobs for the youth,” said Al-Roudhan who doubles as acting minister of state for youth affairs. “The Chinese side stated their desire to contribute to the improvement of the business atmosphere in Kuwait and invest heavily in the Middle East region.
“Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority (KDIPA) offered a lot of privileges to Chinese investors and adopted a host of measures to facilitate the FDI.
“The Chinese firms are highly competitive thanks to their advanced technologies, strong financial positions and balanced foreign policy of their country,” the minister noted, adding that his visit aims to activate the implementation of several agreements on economic cooperation.
Kuwait enjoys an open economic policy, balanced foreign policy and unique geographical location, all of which integrate to make the country one of the most attractive for investors, he stressed.
Trip
During his trip in the capital city of Beijing and three other cities, the minister leads a large business delegation, including representatives of KDIPA, the Public Authority for Industry (PAI) and the National Fund for SME Development (the SME Fund or the National Fund).
They are scheduled to hold talks with senior-level Chinese officials on the economic ties and the vision of His Highness the Amir to turn Kuwait into a global commercial, financial and economic hub.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Petroleum Council few weeks ago approved the establishment of a company outside Kuwait for trading petroleum products, despite the tremendous successes achieved by the global marketing sector in the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), reports Al-Rai daily.
Many oil experts and analysts expressed shock and resentment over the decision, and they believe there is a secret agenda behind the establishment of such a company because the details and the nature of operation are not clear.
In this context, the oil expert Abdulsamad Al-Awadhi said establishing a company to trade petroleum products outside Kuwait is a very strange step and not understandable at all.
He insisted that the decision to establish such an entity is suspicious and not logical, especially since KPC is not in any need for harmful oil speculation which could have negative repercussions on the local oil sector.