Saudi Foreign Trade Surges $173 Billion in Growth During One Year

Majid Al-Qasabi, the Saudi Minister of Commerce, during his participation in the ministerial meeting in the Indian city of Jaipur (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Majid Al-Qasabi, the Saudi Minister of Commerce, during his participation in the ministerial meeting in the Indian city of Jaipur (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Foreign Trade Surges $173 Billion in Growth During One Year

Majid Al-Qasabi, the Saudi Minister of Commerce, during his participation in the ministerial meeting in the Indian city of Jaipur (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Majid Al-Qasabi, the Saudi Minister of Commerce, during his participation in the ministerial meeting in the Indian city of Jaipur (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Minister of Commerce Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi on Thursday unveiled several positive outcomes that the Kingdom has achieved as a result of economic reforms, the most prominent of which is the growth of its foreign trade during the past year by a value of $173 billion.

Al-Qasabi’s remarks were made during his participation in the meeting of trade and investment ministers of the G20, held in the Indian city of Jaipur.

He affirmed that Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” has launched key initiatives to enhance the regional and international integration of the Saudi economy.

Al-Qasabi stated that the volume of non-oil exports in the past year exceeded $28.7 billion, marking a growth rate of 40% for the period from 2018 to 2022.

He also revealed that the number of small and medium-sized enterprises in the country has reached 1.2 million establishments, and the sector provides 80% of the jobs in the labor market.

He added that the Saudi Export and Import Bank has provided loans exceeding $4.6 billion. At the same time, he disclosed a yearly growth in e-commerce from 2016 to 2022 by about 33%.

Minister Al-Qasabi highlighted Saudi Arabia’s commitment to continue trade cooperation and integration to support global economic prosperity.

The goal is to reach the second position among the G20 in digital competitiveness according to the “Digital Riser 2021” report, and the sixth among 50 emerging countries in the “Agility” index for the year 2022.

He pointed out that Saudi Arabia ranked 17th out of 64 countries in the annual Global Competitiveness Report for the current year, and 38th out of 138 in the Logistics Performance Index for the year 2023.



Oil Prices Steady as Markets Weigh Demand against US Inventories

FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
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Oil Prices Steady as Markets Weigh Demand against US Inventories

FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)
FILE - Pump jacks extract oil from beneath the ground in North Dakota, May 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)

Oil prices were little changed on Thursday as investors weighed firm winter fuel demand expectations against large US fuel inventories and macroeconomic concerns.

Brent crude futures were down 3 cents at $76.13 a barrel by 1003 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures dipped 10 cents to $73.22.

Both benchmarks fell more than 1% on Wednesday as a stronger dollar and a bigger than expected rise in US fuel stockpiles pressured prices.

"The oil market is still grappling with opposite forces - seasonal demand to support the bulls and macro data that supports a stronger US dollar in the medium term ... that can put a ceiling to prevent the bulls from advancing further," said OANDA senior market analyst Kelvin Wong.

JPMorgan analysts expect oil demand for January to expand by 1.4 million barrels per day (bpd) year on year to 101.4 million bpd, primarily driven by increased use of heating fuels in the Northern Hemisphere.

"Global oil demand is expected to remain strong throughout January, fuelled by colder than normal winter conditions that are boosting heating fuel consumption, as well as an earlier onset of travel activities in China for the Lunar New Year holidays," the analysts said.

The market structure in Brent futures is also indicating that traders are becoming more concerned about supply tightening at the same time demand is increasing.

The premium of the front-month Brent contract over the six-month contract reached its widest since August on Wednesday. A widening of this backwardation, when futures for prompt delivery are higher than for later delivery, typically indicates that supply is declining or demand is increasing.

Nevertheless, official Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed rising gasoline and distillates stockpiles in the United States last week.

The dollar strengthened further on Thursday, underpinned by rising Treasury yields ahead of US President-elect Donald Trump's entrance into the White House on Jan. 20.

Looking ahead, WTI crude oil is expected to oscillate within a range of $67.55 to $77.95 into February as the market awaits more clarity on Trump's administration policies and fresh fiscal stimulus measures out of China, OANDA's Wong said.