عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

Saudi Arabia Economy Grew 3.9% In Q1 Boosted by Non-oil Activities

A general view of Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia, February 20, 2022. (AFP)
A general view of Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia, February 20, 2022. (AFP)
TT
TT

Saudi Arabia Economy Grew 3.9% In Q1 Boosted by Non-oil Activities

A general view of Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia, February 20, 2022. (AFP)
A general view of Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia, February 20, 2022. (AFP)

Saudi Arabia's economy grew by 3.9% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023, according to initial government estimates of real gross domestic product published on Sunday.

Non-oil activities grew by 5.8% in the first quarter from a year prior, the General Authority for Statistics said, citing flash estimates, while oil activities grew by 1.3%. Government services activities grew by 4.9%, it said.

However growth slowed compared to the fourth quarter of 2022, when GDP grew 5.5% year-on-year.

Seasonally adjusted real GDP decreased by 1.3% in the first quarter of this year, compared with the previous quarter as a result of a decline in oil activities by 4.8%, the report said.

The IMF says the Saudi economy grew 8.7% last year, but projects that Saudi GDP growth will more than halve to 3.1%, this year.

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

China Expands Visa-free Entry to More Countries in Bid to Boost Economy

Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
TT
TT

China Expands Visa-free Entry to More Countries in Bid to Boost Economy

Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Shoppers with their purchased goods walk past a popular outdoor shopping mall in Beijing, on Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

China announced Friday that it would expand visa-free entry to citizens of nine more countries as it seeks to boost tourism and business travel to help revive a sluggish economy.
Starting Nov. 30, travelers from Bulgaria, Romania, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Estonia, Latvia and Japan will be able to enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.
That will bring to 38 the number of countries that have been granted visa-free access since last year. Only three countries had visa-free access previously, and theirs had been eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The permitted length of stay for visa-free entry is being increased from the previous 15 days, Lin said, and people participating in exchanges will be eligible for the first time. China has been pushing people-to-people exchange between students, academics and others to try to improve its sometimes strained relations with other countries, The Associated Press reported.
China strictly restricted entry during the pandemic and ended its restrictions much later than most other countries. It restored the previous visa-free access for citizens of Brunei and Singapore in July 2023, and then expanded visa-free entry to six more countries — France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia — on Dec. 1 of last year.
The program has since been expanded in tranches. Some countries have announced visa-free entry for Chinese citizens, notably Thailand, which wants to bring back Chinese tourists.
For the three months from July through September this year, China recorded 8.2 million entries by foreigners, of which 4.9 million were visa-free, the official Xinhua News Agency said, quoting a Foreign Ministry consular official.