Saudi Arabia’s economy grew 11.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2022 driven by high oil prices as Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine stoked supply concerns.
Oil-related economic activity in the kingdom rose 23.1 per cent annually during the three months to the end of June, according to flash estimates released by the kingdom’s General Authority for Statistics (Gastat) on Sunday.
Non-oil economic activity climbed 5.4 per cent during the period, while government services activities increased 2.2 per cent, supporting the growth of the Arab world’s largest economy, the latest data showed.
Saudi Arabia, the world's leading oil exporter, recovered in 2021 from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic with economic activity picking up momentum this year as oil prices increased.
In the first-quarter of this year, the kingdom’s economy grew 9.9 per cent, recording its highest rate of growth in the last 10 years.
It also recorded the strongest growth rate among the world's largest economies in the January-to-March period.
The kingdom's gross domestic product grew an annual 10.4 per cent in the first three months of the year, compared with an average of 4.5 per cent recorded by the G20 economies during the period, according to data released by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development last month.
The International Monetary Fund, in its latest forecast, estimates that the kingdom’s economy will grow 7.6 per cent in 2022 and 3.7 per cent in 2023 after expanding 3.2 per cent last year.
The World Bank estimates that the country's economy will grow 7 per cent this year while Jadwa Investment expects it to expand 7.7 per cent in 2022, driven by the oil price rally.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, settled 2.10 per cent higher at $103.97 a barrel at the close of markets on Friday. West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, settled 2.28 per cent higher at $98.62 per barrel.
Supply concerns continue to support prices amid expectations that Russian oil supply will edge lower in the months ahead because of its conflict in Ukraine.
On the other hand, even with growing concerns about a potential global recession and rising inflation that have derailed the momentum of economic recovery, data points to oil demand holding up in the third quarter of this year at an average of 100.3 million barrels a day, up from 98.7 million bpd in the second quarter, according to MUFG Bank estimates.
The Japanese lender forecasts that Brent will average $118.88 a barrel in 2022 and $106.13 next year. It estimates WTI will end this year at an average of $114.59 a barrel and $102.25 in 2023.
Business conditions in the kingdom's non-oil private sector also continued to improve on the back of higher output and new orders, the latest data showed.
The headline seasonally adjusted S&P Global Saudi Arabia Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 57 in June, up from 55.7 in May, the highest reading since October 2021 and slightly above the survey’s long-run average of 56.8.
Saudi Arabia's non-oil exports have also surged as the country focuses on diversifying its economy.
The kingdom’s non-oil exports, including re-exports, jumped 27 per cent to 27.9 billion Saudi riyals ($7.44bn) in May, compared with 22bn riyals during May 2021, according to data released by Gastat this month.
Saudi Arabia exported higher volumes of chemicals, plastics and rubber products during the period.
Overall exports increased more than 83 per cent in May to 144.1bn riyals, up from 78.6bn riyals in the same month last year, driven by oil exports, the report said.
Spare
Profile
Company name: Spare
Started: March 2018
Co-founders: Dalal Alrayes and Saurabh Shah
Based: UAE
Sector: FinTech
Investment: Own savings. Going for first round of fund-raising in March 2019
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')
PULITZER PRIZE 2020 WINNERS
JOURNALISM
Public Service
Anchorage Daily News in collaboration with ProPublica
Breaking News Reporting
Staff of The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Ky.
Investigative Reporting
Brian M. Rosenthal of The New York Times
Explanatory Reporting
Staff of The Washington Post
Local Reporting
Staff of The Baltimore Sun
National Reporting
T. Christian Miller, Megan Rose and Robert Faturechi of ProPublica
and
Dominic Gates, Steve Miletich, Mike Baker and Lewis Kamb of The Seattle Times
International Reporting
Staff of The New York Times
Feature Writing
Ben Taub of The New Yorker
Commentary
Nikole Hannah-Jones of The New York Times
Criticism
Christopher Knight of the Los Angeles Times
Editorial Writing
Jeffery Gerritt of the Palestine (Tx.) Herald-Press
Editorial Cartooning
Barry Blitt, contributor, The New Yorker
Breaking News Photography
Photography Staff of Reuters
Feature Photography
Channi Anand, Mukhtar Khan and Dar Yasin of the Associated Press
Audio Reporting
Staff of This American Life with Molly O’Toole of the Los Angeles Times and Emily Green, freelancer, Vice News for “The Out Crowd”
LETTERS AND DRAMA
Fiction
"The Nickel Boys" by Colson Whitehead (Doubleday)
Drama
"A Strange Loop" by Michael R. Jackson
History
"Sweet Taste of Liberty: A True Story of Slavery and Restitution in America" by W. Caleb McDaniel (Oxford University Press)
Biography
"Sontag: Her Life and Work" by Benjamin Moser (Ecco/HarperCollins)
Poetry
"The Tradition" by Jericho Brown (Copper Canyon Press)
General Nonfiction
"The Undying: Pain, Vulnerability, Mortality, Medicine, Art, Time, Dreams, Data, Exhaustion, Cancer, and Care" by Anne Boyer (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
and
"The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America" by Greg Grandin (Metropolitan Books)
Music
"The Central Park Five" by Anthony Davis, premiered by Long Beach Opera on June 15, 2019
Special Citation
Ida B. Wells
MATCH INFO
Final: England v South Africa, Saturday, 1pm
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
How to get there
Emirates (www.emirates.com) flies directly to Hanoi, Vietnam, with fares starting from around Dh2,725 return, while Etihad (www.etihad.com) fares cost about Dh2,213 return with a stop. Chuong is 25 kilometres south of Hanoi.
