Saudi Arabia’s total non-oil merchandise exports to Gulf countries have soared to hit SAR10.99 billion ($2.9 billion) in May, a significant increase from SAR8.43 billion in the same month last year, Arab News reported, citing official figures.

 

According to preliminary data from the General Authority for Statistics, during this period, merchandise imports from GCC countries saw a modest rise from SAR6.03 billion to SAR6.24 billion.

 

As a result, Saudi Arabia’s non-oil trade balance with the GCC saw a notable improvement, climbing to SAR4.74 billion in May from SAR2.4 billion a year earlier, stated the report. 

 

The UAE continued to be Saudi Arabia’s largest non-oil trading partner within the GCC. Non-oil exports from the UAE to Saudi Arabia grew from SAR4.9 billion in May 2023 to SAR6.07 billion this year. Imports from the UAE also increased, rising from SAR3.63 billion to SAR4.54 billion. 

 

This led to an improved trade balance with the UAE of SAR1.52 billion, up from SAR1.26 billion last year.

 

Kuwait, however, experienced a decrease in its trade balance with Saudi Arabia, dropping from SAR1.26 billion in May 2023 to SAR571.4 million this year. 

 

This decline was largely due to a significant drop in re-exports, which fell from SAR898.2 million to SAR147.6 million, alongside a slight reduction in imports from SAR158.5 million to SAR114.6 million.

 

Oman saw a substantial improvement in its trade deficit with Saudi Arabia, narrowing to a deficit of SAR239.3 million in May from SAR887.1 million the previous year. This positive shift was driven by an increase in Omani exports to Saudi Arabia, which rose to SAR384.4 million from SAR289.8 million, coupled with a reduction in imports to SAR623.7 million from SAR1.18 billion.

 

Bahrain achieved a significant increase in its trade surplus with Saudi Arabia, reaching SAR2.83 billion in May, up from SAR555.2 million the previous year. 

 

This improvement was due to a dramatic rise in re-exports from Bahrain, which surged from SAR1.16 billion to SAR3.36 billion, while imports decreased from SAR922.1 million to SAR795.6 million.

 

In contrast, Qatar’s trade balance with Saudi Arabia declined, falling from SAR204.9 million in May 2023 to SAR56.9 million this year, said the Arab News report .

 

This decline was attributed to a reduction in Qatari exports to Saudi Arabia, which fell to SAR223.2 million from SAR344.4 million, while imports from Qatar increased slightly to SAR166.3 million from SAR139.4 million, it added.