Saudi Edition 
Egypt Edition 
UAE Edition 
MENA <> India Corridor 
Logistics (MENA) 
Climate (MENA) 
Share
Negotiations for the UK-GCC FreeTrade Agreement have reached an “advanced stage,” Country Director for Saudi Arabia at the UK’s Department for Business and Trade Pete Ashby told EnterpriseAM Saudi. The parties have made progress across a number of areas, including goods, services, and investment, Ashby said.
No rush: The focus remains on reaching the right terms for an agreement that serves shared interests and long-term growth, rather than getting it done by a specific date, he added. Talks over the draft agreement — which began in 2022 — resumed back in September 2024.
The agreement will build on UK-Saudi trade and investment relations under the Great Futures initiative, launched in May 2024 in Riyadh as a joint campaign of business engagement under the Strategic Partnership Council. The initiative was designed to bring together government and business decision-makers and establish long-lasting partnerships that deliver against the closely-aligned UK’s modern Industrial Strategy and Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, Ashby said.
“The UK and Saudi Arabia are working closely together in five key areas: making financial services more connected, advancing health and life sciences, driving industrial growth with new technologies, supporting creative industries — including major events — and bringing innovation into education. These areas will remain a central feature of our work going forward,” Ashby told us.
By the numbers: Over GBP 4.15 bn of UK-Saudi agreements have been unveiled since the launch of the initiative, creating more than 4.1k jobs in both countries. This figure includes over GBP 3.44 bn of Saudi investment in the UK, creating almost 4.1k jobs. Some GBP 364 mn of new UK-Saudi agreements, which are estimated to create 187 jobs, were announced at the summit early in September.
“We are currently focused on how we use the successes achieved at this year’s summit as a launchpad for what is to come,” Ashby said. UK representatives are set to participate in major upcoming events this year, such as the Future Investment Initiative (FII) and the Global Health Exhibition, both of which are taking place in Riyadh in October. The initiative will continue to support the UK government’s focus on Saudi Arabia through ministerial visits and by securing first-time visits, partner connections, and expansion agreements for businesses during the events, he added.
