Saudi Arabia’s Trade Barriers

“Despite Unrest, U.S. Firms See Promise in Mideast” (International Business, Oct. 10) speaks of “regional efforts to liberalize economies,” but are you aware of a barrier to free trade being instituted by the Saudi Arabian government under the auspices of the Saudi Arabia Standards Organization and a British company, Inchcape Testing Services?

As a small export marketing company, we and our factories will be burdened with thousands of dollars in additional fees and expenses for most products we wish to sell into Saudi Arabia. We believe that many of our factories will be forced to withdraw from the Saudi market entirely, and this will cost us jobs.

It is obvious to us that this action by the Saudi authorities is ill-conceived, being coordinated by a foreign-headquartered company, and is clearly set up to generate inordinate fees for the various parties concerned.

What is the result? Fewer U.S. sales to Saudi Arabia and lost jobs.

JONATHAN O’RIORDAN

Venice