Saudi Arabia: Second reading confirms that economy recorded best result since Q1 2023 in Q3
GDP growth matches preliminary reading: GDP rebounded in Q3, expanding 2.8% year on year, matching the preliminary reading, above the 0.3% contraction logged in Q2 and marking the best result since Q1 2023. On a seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter basis, economic growth waned to 0.9% in Q3, down from the previous quarter’s 1.4% expansion and marking the worst reading since Q4 2023.
Second reading gives expenditure breakdown: The second reading provided a breakdown of the GDP figures by expenditure, showing that the annual upturn reflected improvements in private consumption, fixed investment and exports.
Household spending growth picked up to 3.9% in the third quarter, which marked the best reading since Q4 2023 (Q2: +2.8% yoy). Moreover, fixed investment growth improved to 4.5% in Q3, above the 3.2% expansion logged in the previous quarter. Exports of goods and services rebounded, growing 3.0% in the third quarter, which marked the best reading since Q1 2023 (Q2: -5.8% yoy).
Less positively, government consumption growth was the slowest since Q2 2024, expanding 6.2% (Q2: +10.9% yoy). In addition, imports of goods and services rebounded, growing 7.3% in Q3 (Q2: -0.9% yoy), marking the strongest reading since Q3 2023.