In a major move, Saudi Arabia's cabinet has given approval to a rule allowing foreign investors to own 100 per cent of the retail and wholesale businesses in the kingdom, the official SPA news agency said.

The cabinet had earlier set the country’s foreign ownership ceiling in retail sector at 75 per cent.

In March, Abdullatif Al-Othman, the governor of Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia) had said that it was finalising regulations governing full foreign ownership within the retail and wholesale sectors.
 
Several international retailers have already applied to invest in the sector, revealed Al Othman, adding that rules will cater to businesses that plan to sell products in the country, as well as manufacturers.

Prominent among the controls imposed by the new cabinet decision includes opening the field of investment activity in wholesale and retail trade to all foreign companies operating in this sector.

It will not be restricted to manufacturers of their products, in line with those in the vision of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (2030), which contained a trend to ease restrictions on the ownership and foreign investment in the retail sector to attract regional and international brands, contributing to the creation of job opportunities for the citizens in this sector, said the report.-TradeArabia News Service