The Saudi-U.S. roundtable meeting was held in Riyadh on Tuesday, 20 January 2026, alongside the ninth session of the Saudi American Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council, organized by the General Authority for Foreign Trade. The meeting was attended by H.E. Mr. Abdulaziz bin Omar Al-Sakran, Deputy Governor of GAFT for international Relations, Mr. Waleed bin Hamad Al-Orainan, Secretary General of the Federation of Saudi Chambers, and Mr. Charles Hallab, Chief Executive Officer of the Saudi-American Business Council, with the participation of representatives from government entities and 83 private sector companies.

The meeting reviewed ways to strengthen economic relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America and explored opportunities for trade and investment cooperation across various sectors that play a vital role in advancing bilateral trade relations and increasing trade exchange between the two friendly countries, which reached approximately USD 33 billion in 2024.

H.E. the Deputy Governor of GAFT for International Relations, Mr. Abdulaziz Al-Sakran, noted that the roundtable meeting reflects GAFT’s commitment to enhancing the role of the private sector in developing trade relations by enabling access to foreign markets and removing external barriers in coordination with relevant entities. He highlighted that Saudi American trade relations have witnessed significant economic momentum, resulting in total trade exceeding USD 500 billion over the past decade. 

It is worth noting that GAFT works to develop bilateral trade relations through overseeing business councils and coordination councils, in addition to enabling non-oil Saudi exports to access international markets and supporting efforts to address various challenges they may face.