OVERVIEW
Saudi Arabia is a country located in the Middle East, known for its significant role in global energy markets, thanks to its rich oil reserves.
In 2023, Saudi Arabia ranked
- 19th in terms of GDP, currently valued as $1.07T, out of 195 economies in the world;
- 26th in terms of total exports out of 226 countries;
- 44th in terms of GDP per capita, valued with current US$, out of 196 economies in the world.
Between January and February 2025, the exports of Saudi Arabia have decreased by a percentage amount of 3.55, while imports decreased by a quantity of -13%.
Lastly, specifically in February 2025 Saudi Arabia exported SAU 93.7B (its local monetary value) and imported SAU 63.2B, resulting in a positive trade balance.
ECONOMIC COMPLEXITY RANKING
EXPORT AND IMPORT - PRODUCTS
The principal products that were exported from Saudi Arabia were
- Mineral Products – SAU 68B;
- Chemical Products – SAU 5.31B;
- Plastics and Rubbers – SAU 5.23B;
- Machines – SAU 4.75B;
- Transportation – SAU 4.23B.
On the other hand, the most imported products from other countries to Saudi Arabia were:
- Machines – SAU 14.9B;
- Transportation - SAU 9.72B;
- Chemical Products – SAU 6.17B;
- Metals – SAU 5.99B;
- Mineral Products – SAU 4.36B.
EXPORT AND IMPORT - YEARLY TRADE
During the last five years, the exports of Saudi Arabia have increased by $25.3B, and this important result led, in 2023, to being ranked the 26th most powerful exporter in the world.
The most recent exports are led by
- Crude Petroleum - $181B;
- Refined Petroleum - $38.9B;
- Ethylene Polymers - $10.4B;
- Propylene Polymers - $5.44B;
- Acyclic alcohol derivatives like halogenated, sulphonated and nitrated - $5.06B.
The commonest destination for Saudi Arabia’s exports are:
- China - $63.8B;
- India - $34.8B;
- Japan - $34.7B;
- United States - $16.6B;
- United Arab Emirates - $12.6B.
On a negative note, during the last 20 years Saudi Arabia's economy has become relatively less complex, moving from the 33th to the 41th position in the ECI rank.
CONCLUSIONS
Saudi Arabia isn’t just the birthplace of Islam, but also a leader in trade, specifically speaking in the energy industry, thanks to its rich oil reserves.
Source: https://oec.world/en
