Saudi Arabia

Having posted another year of positive results, Saudi Arabia’s banking sector is positioning itself to take advantage of the government’s expansionist fiscal policy and the large number of projects this has created. In the meantime, opportunities in other areas of the lending landscape are being explored, most notably among the nation’s smaller businesses. An ongoing process of regulatory...

With its sound government finances and trade-friendly policies, Saudi Arabia presents an attractive option for investors. The Kingdom currently benefits from high levels of macroeconomic stability, combined with low debt and a budget that until 2015 had been consistently in comfortable surplus. In June 2015 the country’s stock exchange, Tadawul, was opened to qualified foreign investors for...

While hydrocarbons continue to form the bulk of Saudi Arabia’s revenues, the government has placed an increasing emphasis on economic diversification in recent times. Indeed the Kingdom’s economic growth is now being driven primarily by the non-oil sector, which expanded at a rate of 5% in the decade to 2014. Although low oil prices and the government’s commitment to maintaining spending...

2015 has been a momentous year for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The accession of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in April, which saw a reordering of the country’s line of succession and brought a reshuffle of the main cabinet positions, indicates a leadership with its sights firmly set on the future. In 2014 the Kingdom had a population of 30.77m, up 2.59% on the previous year. Hydrocarbons...

Home to an estimated 15.9% of the world’s proven oil reserves, Saudi Arabia is the single largest economy in the Middle East and North Africa. According to the Ministry of Finance, GDP grew by 9.3% to $746bn in 2013. While oil income is expected to continue to account for the majority of government revenues for the foreseeable future, the non-oil sector has expanded significantly in recent...