ALBAWABA – Latvia is looking to strengthen trade ties with Saudi Arabia, Latvian economics minister Ilze Indriksone told Arab News on Saturday, after attending the Saudi-Latvian Business Forum in Riyadh earlier this month.
Latvian exports to Saudi Arabia were estimated at $149.35 million in 2022, while the Kingdom’s exports to the country totalled $1.41 million in 2021, according to the UN Comtrade Database.
Latvia’s exports to the Kingdom include cereals worth $131.6 million; mineral fuels, oils and distillation products worth $5.6 million; electrical and electronic equipment worth $2.8 million; and pharmaceutical products worth $1.2 million, Arab News reported.
“The establishment of the joint economic committee will not only be the execution of this specific bilateral agreement (signed in Riyadh) but will also develop different connections not only between the businesses but also between ministries,” she said.
On June 7, the Federation of Saudi Chambers and the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia signed an agreement establishing a joint economic committee.
The committee will work to improve information sharing and foster cooperation between Saudi and Latvian companies, according to Arab News. It focused on several sectors, such as trade, investment, finance, transport and logistics, tourism, agriculture and the food industry, as well as on high-value areas in cutting-edge technologies.
The forum was attended by representatives of government entities and local businesses, as well as 20 Latvian companies.
Saudi Arabia and Latvia first established diplomatic relations on March 21, 2003, through the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the UN in New York.
