The Saudi Industrial Property Authority (Modon) has signed more than 6,000 industrial, logistic and services contracts for investments worth more than SR600 billion ($160 billion), said a report.

The deals are expected to provide jobs for more than 520,000 employees, added the Arab News report.

Sami Al-Hussaini, official spokesperson of Modon, told Asharq Al-Awsat that factories in the industrial zones have registered a remarkable rise during 2015, in addition to the completed and under-construction industrial projects, noting that Modon has enhanced the attraction of industrial investment, it said.

Al-Hussaini noted that the authority managed 35 industrial cities by the end of 2015 after it joined the development and operation of the industrial zone in Waad Al-Shamal Region.

According to the official spokesman, the manufacturing industries’ contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country reached 12.2 per cent compared to 10.8 per cent in 2014.

He further noted that these industries’ values reached around SR299 billion ($49.7 billion) by the end of 2015, added the report.