Saudi Arabia has recently secured advanced positions in 36 international indices, reflecting its strengthened economic and investment environment.
The progress encompasses notable categories such as consumer confidence, the business environment, government trust, and the World Competitiveness Rating.
Investment licenses issued in the year's second quarter saw a whopping 93.9 percent growth, surging to approximately 1,800 licenses compared to the 938 permits during the same period last year.
Construction and manufacturing led the surge, accounting for nearly 834 licenses in the second quarter of 2023.
A recent report from the Ministry of Investment, reviewed by Asharq Al-Awsat, revealed that Saudi Arabia clinched the second position in five international benchmarks, including Consumer Confidence Index Consumer Confidence in Local Economic Directions among 22 countries in July.
Saudi Arabia stood out in the National Entrepreneurship Context Index among 51 countries and the Global Competitiveness Cybersecurity Rating from 64 countries in 2022.
- Global competitiveness
Saudi Arabia garnered third place out of 26 in the Trust in Government index, fifth in Business Trust, and fifth in the Edelman Trust Barometer, spanning 26 countries.
Furthermore, the Kingdom ranked sixth in the Global Competitiveness Economic Performance Index from 64 countries this year and seventh in the Venture Capital Reception Index among 132 countries in 2022.
Saudi Arabia secured the 17th position among 64 countries at the Global Competitiveness Rating issued by the International Institute for Management Development this year.
The Kingdom also received multiple international credit ratings: Moody's at A1, Standard & Poor's at AA-1, and Fitch at A+.
- Investment Deals
The total nominal fixed capital formation in the second quarter witnessed a six percent annual increase, amounting to around $74.4 billion. The surge is attributed to government and non-government fixed capital formation rate growth at 22 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively.
The contribution of fixed capital formation to the nominal GDP rose to 28.8 percent in the second quarter, up from around 24.2 percent during the same period last year.
Report data indicates the completion of seven investment deals in the second quarter, including agriculture, food manufacturing, healthcare, and medical services.
China led the way among countries investing in Saudi Arabia with three deals, Jordan with two deals, and the UAE with one. Another joint venture emerged between the UAE and Singapore.
- General Authority, Defense
In recent data, Saudi Arabia revealed a prominent surge in the issuance of investment licenses during the second quarter of this year.
The most increased sectors included construction, manufacturing, professional, educational, technical activities, information and communications, accommodation services, wholesale and retail trade, and vehicle repairs.
The sectors together accounted for a staggering 80.7 percent of the total licenses issued.
The general authority and defense sector saw remarkable growth, notably the highest increase in investment licenses, skyrocketing by 100 percent compared to last year.
The information and communications sector and other services registered growth at 91.7 percent and 90 percent, respectively.
Analyzing the legal status of companies that received investment licenses in the second quarter, Limited Liability Companies (LLC) acquired around 464 licenses, whereas Single Member Limited Liability Companies amassed approximately 1.1 thousand licenses.
Egypt took the lead with 458 licenses, India followed closely with 205 licenses, Yemen in third place with 173, Jordan in fourth with 127, and Pakistan secured fifth position with 122 permits.
