Saudi fund plans to cut foreign investment

Saudi officials on Tuesday lamented the economic strain of regional conflicts as the country’s sovereign wealth fund told an investor forum it was cutting the proportion of its overseas investments. Despite a performance by South African opera singers and a remote appearance by Elon Musk, the mood at the glitzy Future Investment Initiative (FII), sometimes called “Davos in the desert”, was clouded by the crises in Gaza and Lebanon. This year’s three-day event is expected to draw more than 7,000 delegates, including TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and the chief executives of Citigroup and Goldman Sachs. The Gulf has been “a bright spot in the region”, but ongoing conflicts are hampering growth, Muhammad Al Jasser, chairman of the Islamic Development Bank, told a panel.