For the third time in six months, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised its forecast for Saudi Arabia's economic growth for 2025 and 2026, in a sign of a growing robust economy.
The fund is now forecasting the Kingdom's economy, the largest in the Arab world, to grow by 4.3% in 2025 and 4.5% in 2026. This is 0.3 percentage points and 0.5 percentage points respectively higher than the October forecast, according to the IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook Update.
These projections are close to the Saudi government's estimates of 4.4% growth in 2025 and 4.6% this year, stated in the Kingdom’s Pre-Budget Statement for Fiscal Year 2026.
The IMF forecast came after Fitch Ratings affirmed Saudi Arabia’s sovereign credit rating at A+ with a stable outlook, reflecting the Kingdom’s strong fiscal and the momentum of social and economic reforms, according to a report issued by the agency last Friday.
It said the Saudi economy will benefit from higher oil production, as well as the “healthy” prospects for non-oil activities, underpinned by reform, high levels of government and GRE spending, new projects coming on stream and buoyant consumer spending.
Earlier this month, the IMF said next year will be pivotal for the Kingdom thanks to deeper reforms implemented throughout the past years.
It said the resilience shown in 2025 underscores the progress already achieved in reducing the economy’s exposure to oil fluctuations and the sustainability of the Kingdom's financial stability.
Saudi Arabia also built a more diversified and solid economic base, and maintained the growth momentum in its non-oil sector even as oil production falls.
This reflects the ability of the Saudi economy to face market fluctuations, and regional and global challenges.
