By Yousef Saba and Saeed Azhar
DUBAI (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s finance minister said on Monday there had been no fast strategies to transfer additional resources to the General public Financial commitment Fund (PIF), the sovereign wealth fund at the centre of the kingdom’s ideas to diversify its overall economy absent from oil.
The PIF manages over $600 billion in assets, a figure that has doubled in about two yrs.
“I imagine there is no fast strategy to transfer any resources to PIF,” reported Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan, talking at the Environment Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
In 2020, the PIF bought a $40 billion injection from the central bank, which Jadaan mentioned at the time was carried out on an “exceptional foundation”.
In February this year, Saudi Arabia transferred 4% of oil big Saudi Aramco’s shares, now well worth $92 billion, to the PIF.
Jadaan stated Saudi Arabia would, in the 1st quarter of future 12 months, deploy its predicted surplus from this 12 months exactly where it would have “the most good effect on the economic system”, including to the National Development Fund, which supports private sector financial commitment.
“So we have to have to make guaranteed we allocate enough total of income to them,” he reported.
“We have prospects to commit with the PIF simply because they are actually creating very excellent bargains in their investments and performing extremely well, each inside of Saudi and outdoors,” he additional.
He also said foreign reserves would be looked at to take into account no matter whether they have to have to be bolstered.
Jadaan reiterated Saudi Arabia expects financial expansion of 7.4% this year and stated inflation was witnessed reaching in between 2.1% and 2.3% by the end of 2022.
A cap on petrol costs when oil breaches $70 was helping have inflation, he additional.
“It was the conclusion of last 12 months we froze the cost escalation of gasoline for the inside economic system and households at $70. So anything at all over $70, the economy will not come to feel that heat.”
(Reporting by Saeed Azhar and Yousef Saba Creating by Yousef Saba Enhancing by Mark Potter)