China has reportedly “set a comprehensive economic strategy for linking the country to major economic countries in Asia, including Saudi Arabia, through a railway,” a report in Zawya finds, citing a local paper.
With Saudi-Chinese trade exchanges reaching $74 billion last year and estimated to soar up to $100 billion in the next five years, the economic strategy would be welcomed by leaders and businessmen in both nations.
The growth in trade between Saudi Arabia and China is the result of Beijing’s soaring demand for oil and the Middle East’s hunger for lower-cost goods, according to Zawya. “The bilateral trade between China and Saudi Arabia clearly favors the latter. The value of Saudi exports into China exceeded its imports by more than $36 billion in 2012. The bulk of Saudi exports to China comprise crude oil. China is the second largest destination (after Japan) for Saudi Arabia’s exports. China also is largest supplier of goods and services to the Kingdom. While Saudi Arabia is the largest oil supplier to China, followed by Angola and Iran.”
