Japan trade minister praises KSA for stabilizing oil market

Japan's Trade Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, who wrapped up a day's visit to the capital yesterday, said the Kingdom was playing a vital role in stabilizing the global oil market.
The visiting minister, who had a series of meetings in Riyadh yesterday, urged Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Assistant Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources for Petroleum Affairs, to review the supply of oil to Japan and the world market.
Motegi also held talks with Economy and Planning Minister and Co-Chairman of the Joint Saudi-Japanese Business Council Dr. Mohammed Al-Jasser; Commerce and Industry Minister Dr. Tawfik Al-Rabiah; and Vice President of King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA-Kare) Waleed Bin Hussein Al-Faraj before he left for Abu Dhabi in the evening.
During his talks with Prince Abdulaziz, Motegi agreed that the present oil supplies are adequate for global consumption and stability.
They also discussed bilateral cooperation between the Kingdom and Japan in the field of petroleum and the energy sector. There was also discussion on the expansion of Japanese investment in the Kingdom, especially in advanced industries. The Japanese minister promised to urge Japanese companies to make such investments.
The meeting was attended by Prince Faisal bin Turki bin Abdulaziz, adviser at the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, a number of senior officials of the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, and Japanese Ambassador in Riyadh Jiro Kodera.
Yasunari Morino, deputy chief of mission at the Japanese embassy in Riyadh, told Arab News that the ministerial visit was successful and the Japanese minister was able to discuss a wide range of issues relevant to the two countries.
Acknowledging the good bilateral relations, Morino said the two parties explored areas of future cooperation in industrial development, increased Japanese investment in the Kingdom, exchange of experiences in development of human resources and promoting small and medium-sized industries in the Kingdom.
“Japanese companies are interested in participating in infrastructure developments in the Kingdom in areas such as power, water and other workable ventures,” he added.
The bilateral trade between the two countries is estimated at $ 56 billion (over SR 210 billion). Saudi exports to Japan was $ 48 billion (over SR 180 billion), while its imports from Japan remained at $ 8 billion (over SR 30 billion).
There are more than 100 Japanese companies holding joint venture projects in the Kingdom. There are some $ 16 billion (SR 60 billion) in investments in the Kingdom from these Japanese companies.
Under a Saudi-Japan joint venture program, Isuzu's medium-sized truck that was fully assembled at the Japanese automobile company's manufacturing plant in Dammam's Second Industrial City was released onto the Kingdom's automobile market in December last year.