Contrary to the results of the second quarter, economic experts expected the Saudi budget to recover starting from the third quarter of 2020, thanks to major strategic factors that will contribute to raising the Kingdom’s revenues significantly.
Those factors include the lifting of the curfew that was imposed to counter the coronavirus pandemic, the improvement of oil prices, the raising of the value-added tax, and the cancellation of additional financial allocations in government spending to enhance potential financial savings.
In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Economic Advisor Yehya al-Hujairi said that the ceiling of expectations for the recovery of Saudi budget revenues in the third quarter was very high, as a result of the solutions and reforms that the state has adopted before and during the pandemic.
The expert pointed out that one of the most important boosters was the return of economic activity and the improvement of oil prices and value-added tax, as well as the removal of government allocations, all of which would enhance the state’s financial treasury.
For his part, Dr. Abdul-Rahman Baeshen, head of the Shorouk Center for Economic Studies, told Asharq Al-Awsat he was very optimistic about the recovery of Saudi revenues over the past three months, based on positive data about coming investments and the revival of the private sector economically and commercially.
He added that the Kingdom’s adoption of the comprehensive reform of economic, trade and investment policies, along with the launching of initiatives that support activities and production and the promotion of local content, were all factors that would strengthen the national economy in light of the continuing pandemic.
On a different note, latest monetary statistics showed that the value of purchases by banks operating in Saudi Arabia of foreign exchange currencies amounted to 756.7 billion riyals (201 billion dollars) during the second quarter of this year, registering a decrease of 10.6% compared to the same period last year.
