Saudi Arabia attracted foreign direct investments by about 7.85 billion riyals ($2.1 billion) during the second quarter, compared to 51.9 billion riyals ($13.8 billion) during the same period last year, down 85%, given that the comparative period is exceptional due to a deal with Aramco worth 12.4 billion dollar.
But compared to the volume of foreign investment without the Aramco deal, the second quarter of 2022 will be 45% higher than its counterpart in 2021.
These investments are the second highest quarterly value since the third quarter of 2015 “in about seven years” when it recorded 8.3 billion riyals at the time.
The rise in foreign direct investment is due in light of the efforts made by the state to overcome obstacles to foreign investment in the Kingdom, improve the investment environment and increase the number of companies that decided to open their headquarters in the Kingdom, in addition to the huge investment opportunities available in light of the Kingdom’s vision 2030 and its huge projects and privatization of many sectors.
Saudi Arabia aims to increase the net foreign direct investment flowing into the country by 1816 percent within ten years “from 2021 to 2030”, to reach 388 billion riyals ($103.5 billion) annually by 2030, while it was 20.2 billion riyals ($5.4 billion) in 2020.
The foreign direct investment flowing into Saudi Arabia in 2021 recorded the fastest growth rate historically, according to the available data, reaching $19.3 billion (72.3 billion riyals), an increase of 257.2%, compared to $5.4 billion (20.25 billion riyals) in 2020.
The inflow of investments during the past year is the highest since 2010, when it recorded 106.1 billion riyals, while the investments of 2021 exceed the previous three years, with a combined value of 14.2 billion dollars.
7.85 billion riyals foreign direct investment to the Kingdom in the second quarter
