US-Saudi ties shift as Riyadh turns to Trump for investments

Dubai

JUST a few years back, the business relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia was pretty simple: the Americans bought oil, and the Saudis spent much of what they earned on equipment to keep the crude flowing and on planes, tanks, and missiles to protect their borders.

With crude prices down by half over the past three years, US domestic oil production up dramatically, and the kingdom embarking on unprecedented economic reforms - including the sale of a stake in its state-owned oil company - the leverage is shifting toward the Americans as the US emerges as a rival energy exporter.