Business & Money | Tuesday 2 June, 2015 4:40 pm |

What to expect with Saudi Arabia upcoming opening markets to foreign investors.

According to Tara Smyth, Head of Investments for the Middle East at J.P Morgan Private Bank, “opening the Saudi Arabia market to foreign investors will be more than just an inflow of funds, it will lead to a general shift of attention to Saudi companies and potentially lead to new business ventures and further integration of Saudi businesses into international markets. Our clients view this as an opportunity for their businesses to expand and form new international partnerships.”

Clients in Saudi are very proud and they are convinced that their market has reached the level of maturity required to take this first step. They salute the change as it reveals the country’s attractiveness and growing economy for foreign investors. A challenge is to further enhance an already robust standard of corporate governance as it will be a leading factor in driving foreign investor confidence in the market.

Investors are keen on capturing the opportunity behind the growth in the emerging market consumer and investing in Saudi Arabia is a prime way to play that opportunity with a booming population, wealth creation, and the biggest slice of the pie when it comes to consumption in the Middle East.

Furthermore the added benefit of the Saudi Riyal being pegged to USD is bringing very limited currency risk for USD based investors, she adds.