Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan said his country is already seeing the results of its sweeping reform program and would continue to diversify its economy and open its borders for investment.
div > div.group > p:first-child"> Saudi Arabia's economic transformation strategy, the much-vaunted Vision 2030, aims to increase investment, diversifying the kingdom's economy away from a reliance on oil, and create private-sector jobs.
"We have significant reserves. We have significant wealth, we have a significant economy that is growing. We are the largest economy in the region, and we are seeing the results of the reform taking place," he said at an event in London Thursday. However, it was the first time since mid-2014 that the reserves had risen for three straight months, according to Reuters, which peaked at $737 billion in August 2014.
Unemployment, hovering just over 12 percent as of last summer, is at its highest level in a decade. And the kingdom's budget for 2019 is its largest ever as the government increases spending to boost growth amid the lower oil prices.
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