Saudi Arabia: Saudi commercial chiefs have reported a rise in trade name requests, the latest indicator of a rebound in business activity in the Kingdom.

Requests for trade names increased by 19 percent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to a year earlier, SPA reported.

The Ministry of Commerce received 78,056 requests for trade names in the first quarter of 2021, compared to 65,716 requests a year earlier.

Most of the applications were for restaurants, cafés, contracting and foodstuffs activities — an encouraging sign from sectors that have been especially hit hard by the pandemic.

The rollout of vaccines across the Gulf states is helping businesses in some sectors get back to normal, however continued travel restrictions and the resurgence of the COVID-19 coronavirus in countries such as India has tempered earlier expectations of a strong and swift global recovery.

Still, there are also sign of rebounding foreign direct investment activity.

Sovereign AEI, a company that assists foreign investors establish a presence in the country, has also reported an increase in activity and expects to record a 50 percent rise in registrations at the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia this year.

“The Saudi market presents tremendous opportunities,” said Paul Arnold, managing director of Sovereign Saudi Arabia. “We continue to see a growing interest and increasing shift of client focus toward KSA, as the country continues to unveil new strategic initiatives.”

The Kingdom has accelerated efforts to attract foreign investment this year as the pandemic created new challenges for regional economies seeking to diversify, modernize and create jobs for citizens.

In February the government announced it would stop signing contracts with foreign companies from 2024 unless their regional headquarters were based in the Kingdom.