Saudi non-oil economy grows for first time since pandemic

Saudi non-oil economy grows for first time since pandemic

Photo via Bloomberg

Published 10 May,2021 via Bloomberg Markets - Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy -- the engine of job creation -- grew in the first quarter for the first time since the pandemic hit, even as the overall economy was dragged into contraction by oil production cuts.

The non-oil sector grew 3.3% from a year earlier, according to a preliminary estimates released on Monday by the kingdom’s General Authority for Statistics. The oil sector shrank 12%, the most in at least a decade according to data compiled by Bloomberg, leading the overall economy to contract 3.3%.