Saudi King meets UK treasury chief ahead of Aramco listing

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz has met British treasury chief Philip Hammond to discuss economic and financial investments between the two countries, as well as security cooperation amid heightened tensions with Iran.

The British Foreign Office says Hammond is traveling with a delegation that includes the UK investment minister and CEO of London’s stock exchange as Saudi Arabia mulls listing internationally a much-anticipated public offering of its oil company Aramco by 2021.

The UK says Hammond is in the Red Sea city of Jeddah as part of the government’s ongoing support for Saudi Arabia’s economic and social reforms.

Hammond is also expected to hold meetings with the foreign, finance, investment and interior ministers of Saudi Arabia.