Saudi Arabia Macroeconomic Developments
- Riyadh will host the World Expo 2030 after defeating challenges from South Korea and Italy for the prestigious event. The Saudi capital was picked by a majority of 119 out of 165 votes by the member states of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions. The secret ballot was carried out using electronic voting, and Riyadh was confirmed as the successor host to Osaka in 2025.
- Saudi Arabia’s trade surplus recorded an increase for the second month in a row, reaching SAR44 billion ($11.7 billion) in September 2023. This marked an increase of 27.5 percent, compared to the surplus in August, when it reached SAR34.3 billion ($9 billion), but it showed a decline of 31.5 percent on an annual basis.
- Saudi Arabia raised a syndicated loan of SAR41.25 billion ($11 billion) to fund a budget deficit. The loan has a margin of 100 basis points above the secured overnight financing rate (SOFR).
