عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

King Abdulaziz International Airport Achieves Top Places in 2023 ACI Rankings

King Abdulaziz International Airport gets crowned as one of the most advanced airports in air connectivity in the Middle East - SPA
King Abdulaziz International Airport gets crowned as one of the most advanced airports in air connectivity in the Middle East - SPA
TT
TT

King Abdulaziz International Airport Achieves Top Places in 2023 ACI Rankings

King Abdulaziz International Airport gets crowned as one of the most advanced airports in air connectivity in the Middle East - SPA
King Abdulaziz International Airport gets crowned as one of the most advanced airports in air connectivity in the Middle East - SPA

King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA) was crowned one of the most advanced airports in air connectivity in the Middle East by the Airports Council International (ACI).
During ACI's annual General Assembly Conference and Exhibition in Riyadh, KAIA placed third as the best airport in the field of air connectivity in the Middle East for 2023, SPA reported.
These results are an extension of the ongoing efforts of the Jeddah Airports Company, which manages and operates KAIA in using the latest technology, developing the infrastructure of the Kingdom's founder’s airport, upgrading the quality of services, and expanding the network of local and international air destinations to more than 125.
As part of its endeavor to achieve the national strategic objectives of civil aviation emanating from the Saudi Vision 2030, the Jeddah Airports Company continues to strengthen the position of KAIA as a global hub airport, and to provide a unique travel experience for all travelers, including tourists and visitors to the Grand Mosque of Makkah from around the world, with the airport achieving a record growth in operations of over 36%.

The airport also aims to increase the number of destinations to 135 by the end of 2024, achieving a growth of 6% compared to 2023.
Jeddah Airports Company CEO Eng. Mazen Johar unveiled the company's intention to upgrade the level of services to realize the goals of the National Transport and Logistics Strategy, which aims to increase operational efficiency and raise the capacity of KAIA to reach 114 million passengers by 2030.

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

IMF Praises Saudi Arabia’s Unprecedented Economic Transformation

Efforts to diversify the economy have started to bear fruit: IMF (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Efforts to diversify the economy have started to bear fruit: IMF (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
TT

IMF Praises Saudi Arabia’s Unprecedented Economic Transformation

Efforts to diversify the economy have started to bear fruit: IMF (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Efforts to diversify the economy have started to bear fruit: IMF (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has praised Saudi Arabia’s significant economic changes under the “Vision 2030” national transformation plan, noting improvements in public finances and business regulations.
An IMF mission expected non-oil growth in Saudi Arabia to reach around 3.5% in 2024, crediting careful economic policies and major reforms.
The mission also highlighted record-low unemployment rates and controlled inflation in the country, and welcomed recent updates to funding requirements aligned with “Vision 2030” goals.
The IMF released a concluding statement at the end of its official staff visit to Saudi Arabia.
In the statement, the IMF said: “Saudi Arabia’s unprecedented economic transformation is progressing well.”
“Prudent macroeconomic policies, transformative changes—including through fiscal reforms and in the regulatory business environment—and strong domestic demand have helped prop up non-oil growth. Inflation remains contained.”
“Spending reprioritization and recalibration of major spending programs are ongoing. Efforts to diversify the economy have started to bear fruit.”
“Building on these successes, it will be important to sustain the non-oil growth momentum, maintain financial sector stability, continue mitigating risks of overheating, reverse declining total factor productivity and ensure inter-generational equity.”
Economic Activity Remains Robust
According to the IMF, real non-oil growth decelerated from 5.3% in 2022 to a still robust 3.8% in 2023, driven mostly by private consumption and non-oil investment.
While non-oil growth for Q1-2024 indicates some moderation in economic activity— the IMF staff estimated that the output gap remains in positive territory, close to 2% of the non-oil potential GDP.
The statement also noted that the Saudi economy weathered the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East well, thanks to minimal trade and financial exposures to the affected regions and uninterrupted shipments.
Unemployment Rate Reached Historic Lows
In 2023, the Saudi economy added over one million jobs, primarily in the private sector. The overall unemployment rate for Saudis dropped to 7.7% in the last quarter of 2023—inching closer to the 2030 Vision objective of 7%.
Labor force participation rates have remained at historically high levels but relatively flat over the past year for both men and women, albeit with the women’s rate still comfortably exceeding the Vision 2030 goal of 30%.
Headline Inflation Has Decelerated Rapidly
After peaking at 3.4% in January 2023, year-on-year inflation receded to 1.6% in April 2024, helped by an appreciating nominal effective exchange rate.
However, rents are growing at a brisk rate of about 10% amid inflows of expatriate workers and large redevelopment plans in Riyadh and Jeddah.
Wholesale prices have also edged up recently, reflecting an increase in input costs. So far, some uptick has been observed in the wages of high-skilled workers.
Additionally, the current account surplus narrowed significantly.
The decline in the current account surplus from 13.7% of GDP in 2022 to 3.2% of GDP in 2023 mainly reflected lower oil exports and strong growth in investment-related imports.
These were partly mitigated by a record surplus in the services balance, including a 38 percent surge in net tourism income.
The Saudi Central Bank’s (SAMA) holding of net foreign assets reached $423.7 billion in April 2024, which was slightly above the end-2023 level.
Reserves remain ample, representing 15.6 months of imports and 208% of the IMF’s reserve adequacy metric by end-2023.