Saudi Arabia’s GDP surpasses $1tr mark, joins trillion-dollar club

September 24, 2023 (MLN): Saudi Arabia has successfully joined the trillion-dollar club with its gross domestic product (GDP) surpassing the $1 trillion (SAR 4.155tr) mark for the first time, achieving the national goal well ahead of the target date of 2025, as per a press release issued by the Saudi Press Agency.

The figures were disclosed in a report issued by the Federation of Saudi Chambers on the occasion of the Kingdom’s 93rd National Day.

The Kingdom has achieved remarkable successes that have immeasurably contributed to improving major economic indicators and upgrading the ranking of the national economy by global institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, which said the Saudi economy was the fastest growing among the Group of Twenty (G20) member states in 2022.

According to the report, the Saudi economy achieved a growth rate of 8.7%, the highest among the G20 member states spurred mainly by its production capabilities, which is reflected in the increase in the self-sufficiency rate of the Saudi economy to 81.2%, and the increase in the investment rate (the invested percentage of output) to 27.3%.

Such performance led to increased confidence in the national economy and the Saudi riyal as a store of value by increasing the ratio of local currency deposits to total savings deposits from 66.5% in 2021 to 67.7% in 2022.

The Kingdom was ranked 17th in the global economy out of the world’s 64 most competitive countries.

According to the Global Competitiveness Report of the International Center for Management Development (IMD), the Kingdom has ranked second in the world in terms of the growth rate of international tourists, and it ranked 51st in the Global Innovation Index.

The rate of integration of the Saudi economy into the global economy increased by 63.1%.

The report indicated that the Saudi private sector will continue its strong role and performance thanks to its status as an effective partner in the comprehensive development process and in achieving the goals of the ambitious Vision 2030.

The private sector’s contributions to GDP increased to SAR 1.63tr, or 41% of GDP, with a growth rate of 5.3%, according to the report.

The report said non-governmental investments increased to SAR 907.5 billion, with a growth rate of 32.6%, to an 87.3% contribution to the total fixed investments.

The number of workers in the private sector has increased from 8.084 million in 2021 to 9.42m in 2022, with a growth rate of 16.6%, according to the report.

Under the localization endeavor of the labor force, the number of Saudis working in the private sector has increased from 1.91m in 2021 to 2.12m in 2022, with a growth rate of 14.9%, which was reflected in an increase in the percentage of Saudi workers in the private sector to 58.2%.

The report highlighted the success of the Kingdom’s policies regarding diversifying the economic base and supporting Saudi exports to global markets.

Exports of goods and services increased by 54.4%, and the export capacity of the Saudi economy increased from 33% to 39.3% of the GDP.

The value of exports of goods and services rose to 171.9 % of the value of imports of goods and services in 2022, up from 2.35x the previous year.

The value of non-oil exports reached SAR 315.7bn, with a growth rate of 13.7%, accounting for 20.5% of commodity exports, and reaching 178 countries around the world.

The report expected that the Saudi economy and the private sector to continue their strong performance, citing various economic indicators, government support packages, and huge projects being implemented in various regions across the Kingdom.

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