RIYADH: Saudi Arabia imports edged down by 6.4 per cent in third quarter of the current year to stand at SAR155.5 billion compared with SAR166.2bn in the second quarter.
The kingdom non-oil exports dipped by 0.2 per cent in the third quarter of the year, amounting to SAR46.57bn compared with SAR46.64bn in the second quarter.
According to a report by the Central Department of Statistics and Information, the kingdom’s non-oil exports in three-month period were enough to cover 29 per cent of its imports for the same quarter.
The report published by the Saudi Press Agency indicates that the drop the kingdom’s non-oil exports suffered in the third quarter wasn’t limited to the value but to the quantity as well.
The volume of non-oil exports dropped to 12.7 million tonnes in the third quarter compared with 13 million tonnes in the same period last year.
Exports to European Union members retreated by 21.5 per cent to stand at SAR4.8bn while exports to members of the Gulf Cooperation Council inched up by 0.4 per cent.
The United Arab Emirates, China, India, Singapore and the United States of America were the top destinations of Saudi Arabia’s non-oil exports in the third quarter, accounting for 42.7 per cent of the total.
