Due to the importance of Makkah and Medina in the Muslim world, and the millions of pilgrims they attract, the two holy cities form a major component of Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy. The pilgrimages of Hajj and Umrah are performed each year, with worshippers’ fees, food, transport and accommodation totalling some $12bn in revenues. Makkah is home to the Masjid Al Haram, known as the Grand...
Chapter | Makkah & Medina from The Report: Saudi Arabia 2018
Chapter | Alternative Investments from The Report: Saudi Arabia 2018
Saudi Arabia’s investment environment as a whole is undergoing an overhaul, with Vision 2030 promoting private sector growth, economic diversification, improved infrastructure and a stronger legislative framework for investors. The alternative investment segment in particular should benefit from this, with enhanced rules relating to VC and PE, and a broadening range of targets likely to emerge...
Chapter | Trade & Investment from The Report: Saudi Arabia 2018
For many decades Saudi Arabia has built its financial reserves with the proceeds of oil exports, while its increasingly affluent consumers have established the country as a significant importer of goods and services. However, lower oil prices have eroded the Kingdom’s healthy trade surplus, reminding countries around the world of the importance of having a diversified export base. Saudi Arabia...
As a member of the G20 and the world’s 17th-largest exporter, Saudi Arabia is an economic powerhouse. Classified as a high-income nation by the World Bank, its population of over 30m has established a consumer market in which domestic and global businesses have prospered. The exploitation of its hydrocarbons resources has driven growth for decades, and the nation’s trading status has been...
2017 proved a momentous year for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as the various strategies related to the country’s Vision 2030 and National Transformation Plan 2020 started to take shape.
Economic update | Kuwait: Year In Review 2017
Rising oil prices helped offset cuts in Kuwait’s energy production in 2017, with infrastructure projects and new taxes laying the foundations for healthy growth this year.