Trafigura has entered into a US$500mn credit facility with the Saudi Export-Import Bank (Saudi Exim), marking yet another deal the global commodities trader has signed with a national export credit agency.

The three-year agreement will facilitate the purchase of commodities produced in Saudi Arabia, including metals such as gold and copper as well as downstream oil and gas products, connecting the Middle Eastern state’s exporters with over 156 markets worldwide.

“Such credit facilities come as part of our ongoing efforts to expand the global reach of Saudi exports,” says Naif Al-Shammari, Saudi Exim’s deputy CEO.

Launched in 2020 to support Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 – a mammoth economic diversification plan – Saudi Exim’s remit centres around growing non-oil exports, which currently account for less than 20% of the total, according to figures from the General Authority for Statistics.

“Our collaboration with Trafigura aligns with Vision 2030 goals and will play a pivotal role in unlocking promising investment and trade opportunities between the Kingdom and countries worldwide,” adds Al-Shammari. “This strategic endeavour will pave the way for driving global economic growth and advancing international trade.”

Trafigura’s latest financing follows a similar deal signed with the Abu Dhabi Exports Office (Adex) in March, which was characterised at the time by Mohamed Saif Al Suwaidi, director general of Abu Dhabi Fund for Development and chairman of Adex’s Exports Executive Committee, as contributing “to the UAE’s economic diversification efforts, increasing trade with the rest of the world, and enhancing the presence of Emirati goods in the international market”.

In the past 12 months, traders such as Trafigura have tapped billions of dollars in ECA-backed financing from countries keen to secure energy imports and metals supplies, including Italy and Germany.

Meanwhile, in June, Trafigura was the beneficiary of two US Exim-backed facilities enabling US exporters to sell liquefied natural gas to European buyers seeking to replace Russian imports following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.