Saudia Cargo, the national air cargo carrier of Saudi Arabia, is tapping into diverse sectors in China and Asia, including e-commerce, agriculture and technology, through the launch of a new venture in Hong Kong and a planned capacity expansion.
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“China specifically, and the Far East in general, as a critical trade market to Saudi Arabia, will play a critical role in supporting Saudi Vision 2030 goals, and hence expanding our operations here just comes naturally,” CEO and managing director Loay Mashabi said in an interview with the Post on Monday.
As the Middle Eastern country modernises and diversifies its economy to reduce its reliance on oil under the Vision 2030 plan, its ties with China have deepened, generating more opportunities.
Even amid trade and geopolitical tensions like the escalating Iran-Israel conflict, trade volume – at least from the Saudi Arabia side – would not slow down, as the country’s economy and projects would keep pushing ahead, Mashabi said.
The company’s commitment to Asia, and China specifically, was for the long haul, he added.
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“If we make a decision based on a six-month disruption or one-year disruption, then we are late in the game,” he said. “We have to build an operating model where it can maximise profits out of the upside and minimise losses in bad times.”
The “China-Saudi story” was rapidly growing across all sectors and bringing many long-term opportunities for a logistics player like Saudia, said Mashabi, who has been personally involved in the transport sector for some time, having previously served as the kingdom’s deputy minister for logistics services.