ALBAWABA – Saudi non-oil GDP grew 3.6 percent in the third quarter of 2023, despite the overall gross domestic product (GDP) of Saudi Arabia shrinking by 4.5 percent in the same quarter, year-on-year, official data reported by Bloomberg on Tuesday showed.
The Saudi oil economy shrunk by 17.3 percent, compared to a 3.8 percent contraction in the second quarter, due to the oil cuts announced earlier in 2023, according to the General Authority for Statistics.
Notably, Saudi Arabia had announced that the cuts would carry until the end of the year.
Non-oil economic activity is the main driver of employment in Saudi Arabia, in which Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is investing trillions of dollars to support the Saudi non-oil GDP and reduce reliance on oil.
Saudi Arabia announced the Soudah tourism masterplan earlier this year as part of the effort to bolster growth in Saudi non-oil GDP - Soudah Masterplan
Saudi Arabia began ambitious mineral prospection and extraction activities earlier this year and is actively investing in the founding of a competitive tourism sector.
In addition to mining and minerals, the country is pouring billions into the Saudi construction boom, with a newly founded fund designated for the Riyadh district and the Public Investment Fund (PIF) has invested nearly $3 billion in the advancement of the Saudi construction boom.
The private sector also announced investments in billions of dollars lined up to finance projects in Saudi Arabia, including more than $10 billion from Roshan Group, company CEO David Grover said back in September.
The Saudi construction boom has seen a string of massive investments in the last seven to eight years, with total property and infrastructure projects valued at over one trillion dollars, earlier reports confirmed.
