Saudi Arabia breaks petro-dollar deal with US

Saudi Arabia will not renew its petrodollar deal with the United States, which expired on Sunday, June 9, as per media reports. This agreement, originally signed on June 8, 1974, had been a key part of US global economic influence.The deal set up joint commissions for economic cooperation and Saudi Arabia's military needs. Back then, American officials hoped it would encourage Saudi Arabia to produce more oil and strengthen economic ties with Arab countries.
The deal established two joint commissions, one based on economic cooperation and the other on Saudi Arabia's military needs. At the time, it was said that it heralded an era of close cooperation between the two countries, says Katja Hamilton of BizCommunity.The crucial decision to not renew the contract enables Saudi Arabia to sell oil and other goods in multiple currencies, including the Chinese RMB, Euros, Yen, and Yuan, instead of exclusively in US dollars. Additionally, the potential use of digital currencies like Bitcoin may also be considered.In a more recent move, Saudi Arabia has announced its involvement in Project mBridge, a project which explores a multi-central bank digital currency (CBDC) platform shared among participating central banks and commercial banks. It is built on distributed ledger technology (DLT) to enable instant cross-border payments settlements, and foreign-exchange transactions.