Weekly Market Brief – 3/3/2023

Saudi Arabia Macroeconomic Developments

• Saudi Arabia ranks first among G20 countries with a 4.9 percent productivity growth rate, according to a series of modeled readings issued by the International Labor Organization on worker productivity. This increase represents the highest productivity growth rate achieved by the Kingdom, which lagged by 6.3 percent in 2019.

 

• Saudi Arabia’s overall merchandise exports increased by 6.4 percent YoY in the fourth quarter of 2022 to SAR342.4 billion ($91.24 billion), according to the latest data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GAStat).

 

• According to the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) the aggregate net profit of Saudi-listed banks rose 18 percent before zakat and tax to reach SAR6.41 billion ($1.7 billion) in January compared to SAR5.41 billion ($1.44 billion) a year earlier. Combined deposits rose by nearly 9 percent YoY to SAR2.27 trillion ($605 billion) in January. Lending to the private sector jumped by 12 percent YoY to reach SAR2.29 trillion ($611 billion).