RIYADH — The International Monetary Fund has again lowered its forecast for Saudi economic growth for the years of 2024 and 2025. According to the Global Economic Outlook report issued by the IMF on Tuesday, the Saudi economy is expected to grow by 1.5 percent this year and 4.6 percent next year, a reduction of 0.2 percentage points and 0.1 percentage points respectively, compared to last July's forecasts. This slight slashing in the economic growth forecast comes less than a month after the IMF issued its annual report within the framework of Article IV Consultations on the Kingdom's economy. In its July report, the IMF fixed its forecasts for GDP growth at 1.7 percent and 4.7 percent for the current and the coming years. "Compared to April, the forecasts have been revised downward by 0.4 percentage points for 2024, mainly due to the extension of oil production cuts in Saudi Arabia and the ongoing conflict in Sudan, which has inflicted heavy losses," the report noted. The IMF expects oil prices to rise by 0.9 percent in 2024 to around $81 a barrel. In early October, the Saudi Ministry of Finance lowered its estimates for economic growth for the current year to 0.8 percent, compared to its previous forecast of 4.4 percent. Saudi non-oil activities record 4.9% growth in 2Q 2024 Meanwhile, the Saudi Ministry of Economy and Planning released on Tuesday the economic report for the second quarter of 2024. The report highlighted the remarkable progress achieved by the Kingdom in strengthening its non-oil sector and diversifying its economy, as non-oil activities recorded a growth of 4.9 percent year-on-year, supported by a growth in manufacturing industries with 3.4 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2024. The report focused on the performance of vital sectors such as the financial sector and the labor market. It praised the Kingdom's efforts to increase localization opportunities, as the unemployment rate fell to a historic level of 7.1 percent, approaching the target of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 of 7 percent.
