SAUDI ARABIAN MARKET
Saudi Arabia Macroeconomic Developments
• Saudi Arabia suspended travel from 20 countries, including the U.S., to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Daily COVID-19 cases rose 22 percent compared to the prior week but remain well below the case levels seen between April and July 2020 in the Kingdom. The government also announced it would suspend all recreational events in the Kingdom for 10 days, including dine-in services.
• Saudi Arabia’s non-oil private sector economy and business conditions continued to improve in January, according to IHS Markit’s Purchasing Managers’ Index. PMI registered 57.1 points in January from 57 points in December where the 50-point mark separates growth from contraction. Output, new work, and new orders all expanded at a faster rate, though employment levels continued to decline.
• Personal remittances of expatriates in Saudi Arabia rose 19 percent in 2020, reaching SAR149.7 billion ($39.9 billion) compared to SAR125.3 billion ($33.5 billion) during 2019. Transfers during December were the highest in five months, totaling SAR15.2 billion ($4 billion).
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