RIYADH: Bilateral trade between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain is set to receive a further boost after banks from both sides entered into an agreement to offer competitive financing to firms involved in the import and export of goods. According to a memorandum of understanding signed between the National Bank of Bahrain and the Saudi Export-Import Bank, also known as Saudi EXIM Bank, NBB will offer competitive financing rates to Bahraini companies importing goods from Saudi Arabia. NBB’s Saudi clients can also export their products using its guarantees, credit insurance and more. “We are pleased to be signing with the National Bank of Bahrain to strengthen trade flows between Saudi Arabia and other countries,” said Saad Al-Khalb, CEO of Saudi EXIM Bank. According to Al-Khalb, the MoU aligns with the bank’s role of empowering Saudi exporters through strategic partnerships and bolstering non-oil activities in Saudi Arabia. He added: “We are committed to the contribution to the Saudi Vision 2030 realization by investing in key partnerships to further enhance the kingdom’s presence in global markets.” Diversifying the Kingdom’s economy, which has been dependent on oil for several decades, is one of the crucial goals of Saudi Vision 2030, and catalyzing the growth of non-oil exports is widely considered an essential element to achieve this target. “We are confident that our partnership with Saudi EXIM Bank will lay the groundwork for a fruitful collaboration between our neighboring countries,” said Mansour Alsaghayer, CEO of NBB in Saudi Arabia. Earlier in October 2022, Al-Khalb, in an interview with Arab News, said that the bank’s primary mandate is to support the Kingdom’s economy, flow of goods, trades, infrastructure and long-term projects. He also added that the bank’s main objective is to ensure that no Saudi cross-border export fails due to a lack of insurance or financing. In January 2023, the bank signed an MoU with the Italian Export Credit Agency, also known as SACE, to boost trade between the two countries. The MoU with SACE was signed to create a framework for mutual reinsurance to enhance the presence of Saudi exports in Italian markets. EXIM Bank is one of the main pillars in supporting Saudi exports and increasing their impact on the development of the national economy, in line with the targets of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 to increase the value of non-oil exports to 50 percent of the non-oil gross domestic product.