The Minister of Finance, Dr. Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, opened here today the 7th Saudi Euromoney Conference in the presence of 1,500 participants including 400 from outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In his opening speech, Dr. Al-Assaf said that it is fortunate that the Conference coincides with the 7th anniversary of the ascension to the throne and the Saudi people pledging allegiance to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, noting that the Kingdom has achieved economic growth estimated at about 6.8%, despite the slowing of global economy. Dr. Al-Assaf also stressed that the governmental support for the national economy, will ensure the continuation of sustainable growth, especially in light of the high volumes of Saudi non-oil exports. The Minister of Finance pointed out that the reform plans adopted by the King since his ascension to the throne, have transformed Saudi Arabia as an international first-class investment-prone country in the midst of major challenges facing the global economy. "In view of governmental financial good situation in the medium term, I see no obstructions in the implementation of the government's huge investment program," he added. "Moreover, the volume of investment expenditures in the budget of this year amounted to SR 260 billion at the same rate of the past four years," Dr.Al-Assaf noted. --More
