RIYADH — The International Monetary Fund (IMF) noted that the unemployment rate in Saudi Arabia is recording historic lows. The IMF forecast showed that non-oil growth in Saudi Arabia would reach about 3.5 percent during the current year. "The precautionary macroeconomic policies and the changes that brought about transformations in the Kingdom helped give an impetus to non-oil growth," the Fund pointed out. According to an IMF report, inflation in Saudi Arabia remains contained. It welcomed the recent process of amending financing requirements related to the goals of Vision 2030. The IMF issued a statement on the results of its Article Four Mission, in which it said that economic activity in Saudi Arabia remains strong, and that the oil GDP contracted by 9 percent in 2023, primarily due to the OPEC+ agreement for voluntary oil production cuts, resulting in a 0.8 percent contraction in overall gross domestic product (GDP). It is noteworthy that in April this year, the IMF revised its growth forecast for the Saudi economy upwards by about 0.5 percent to 6 percent for 2025, from 5.5 percent its forecast last January. In its "Global Economic Outlook" report, the Fund expected the Kingdom's economy to grow by 2.6 percent in 2024, down 0.1 percent, compared to its previous forecast of 2.7 percent in January.
