Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) signed a memorandum of understanding worth up to $15 billion (more than 56.2 billion riyals), according to a statement on Friday.

The cooperation memorandum aims to enhance financial cooperation and investment and trade opportunities, and provides a framework to support financing, targeting the purchase of American goods and services for the benefit of eligible portfolio companies of the fund.

The U.S. Export-Import Bank is the U.S. government agency specialized in export credit.

The memorandum of understanding aligns with the fund's other partnerships with a number of leading export credit institutions in priority markets. PIF's financing strategy benefits from several financing sources and instruments.

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The largest international market for the Public Investment Fund

The United States is the largest international market for the Public Investment Fund, with the value of purchases by the fund and its portfolio companies from the U.S. market since 2017 reaching $65 billion, contributing $35 billion to the U.S. GDP.

Under the memorandum of understanding, PIF and the U.S. Export-Import Bank will explore cooperation opportunities in a number of sectors, including advanced technologies, aerospace and aviation industries, infrastructure, future mobility, water security, and minerals dedicated to advanced manufacturing.

The two parties intend to strengthen supply chains and drive digital and industrial innovation, while continuing to enable long-term economic development in the Kingdom and the United States.

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Saraka enables enhanced cooperation in strategic sectors

Rees Al Saud, Director of Investor Relations and Financial Institutions at the Public Investment Fund, said: "The partnership with the U.S. Export-Import Bank will enable us to enhance cooperation in strategic sectors, unlock new opportunities for partnerships between American and Saudi companies, and develop the exchange of information and expertise between them, supporting long-term sustainable growth."

The agreement comes within PIF's strategy to diversify financing sources and expand its partnerships with global financial institutions, supporting the implementation of major projects, enhancing private sector participation, and contributing to the achievement of the goals of Vision 2030.