About

Overview In 2023, Saudi Arabia was the number 19 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 26 in total exports, the number 31 in total imports, the number 44 economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the number 36 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) .

Exports The top exports of Saudi Arabia are Crude Petroleum ($181B), Refined Petroleum ($39.3B), Ethylene Polymers ($10.5B), Propylene Polymers ($5.46B), and Acyclic alcohol derivatives (halogenated, sulphonated, nitrated) ($5.22B), exporting mostly to China ($64.4B), India ($34.8B), Japan ($34.7B), United States ($16.5B), and United Arab Emirates ($11.5B).

In 2023, Saudi Arabia was the world's biggest exporter of Crude Petroleum ($181B), Propylene Polymers ($5.46B), Acyclic alcohol derivatives (halogenated, sulphonated, nitrated) ($5.22B), Other Sea Vessels ($1.44B), and Tug Boats ($920M)

Imports The top imports of Saudi Arabia are Cars ($19.1B), Refined Petroleum ($13.2B), Gold ($7.24B), Broadcasting Equipment ($6.78B), and Packaged Medicaments ($4.99B), importing mostly from China ($42.9B), United Arab Emirates ($15.2B), United States ($14.7B), India ($11.4B), and Germany ($9.41B).

In 2023, Saudi Arabia was the world's biggest importer of Sheep and Goats ($1.17B), Iron Reductions ($1.02B), and Nutmeg, mace and cardamons ($140M)

Location Saudi Arabia borders Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen by land and Bahrain, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, and Sudan by sea.

Latest Trends

November, 2024

Historical Data

Yearly Trade

Flow
Color
Depth
Top Export (2023)Crude Petroleum$181B
Top Destination (2023)China$64.4B

In 2023, Saudi Arabia exported a total of $300B, making it the number 26 exporter in the world. During the last five reported years the exports of Saudi Arabia have changed by $4.55B from $296B in 2018 to $300B in 2023.

The most recent exports are led by Crude Petroleum ($181B), Refined Petroleum ($39.3B), Ethylene Polymers ($10.5B), Propylene Polymers ($5.46B), and Acyclic alcohol derivatives (halogenated, sulphonated, nitrated) ($5.22B). The most common destination for the exports of Saudi Arabia are China ($64.4B), India ($34.8B), Japan ($34.7B), United States ($16.5B), and United Arab Emirates ($11.5B).

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Exportaciones (2023)
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Destinos (2023)
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Market Growth

Flow
View
Growth
Fastest Growing Export Markets (2022 - 2023)
Poland$1.63B (+ 27.1%)
Malaysia$763M (+ 8.65%)
Nigeria$743M (+ 103%)
Fastest Growing Import Markets (2022 - 2023)
China$2.9B (+ 7.24%)
Germany$1.94B (+ 25.9%)
United States$1.89B (+ 14.8%)

Crecimiento de exportaciones según mercado (2022 - 2023)

Potential Exports

Potential Exports

Type
Flow
Depth
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Service Trade

Service Trade

Saudi Arabia Exports Services (2018)$19.7B
Saudi Arabia Imports Services (2018)$83.8B

In 2018, Saudi Arabia exported $19.7B worth of services. The top services exported by Saudi Arabia in 2018 were Travel ($13.8B), Transportation ($4.51B), Government services, n.i.e. ($678M), Financial services ($298M), and Computer and information services ($282M).

The top services imported by Saudi Arabia in 2018 were Government services, n.i.e. ($28.8B), Travel ($16.6B), Transportation ($15.7B), Other business services ($10.4B), and Construction services ($6.41B).

Exportación de Servicios (2018)

Importación de Servicios (2018)

Economic Complexity

Overview

Complejidad Económica (Comercio)0,76Ranking 36 de 132
Complejidad Económica (Tecnología)0.98Ranking 23 de 96
Complejidad Económica (Investigación)-0.51Ranking 84 de 140

Most Specialized Products by RCA Index

Saudi Arabia has a high level of specialization in Sulfur (50.5), Other Sea Vessels (19.6), Tug Boats (17.9), Alkylbenzenes and Alkylnaphthalenes (13.5), and Acyclic alcohol derivatives (halogenated, sulphonated, nitrated) (11.9). Specialization is measured using RCA, an index that takes the ratio between Saudi Arabia observed and expected exports in each product.

Most Complex Products by PCI

Export Opportunities by Relatedness

The top export opportunities for Saudi Arabia according to the relatedness index, were Petroleum Gas (0.11), Typewriters (0.1), Iron Reductions (0.097), Raw Aluminium (0.095), and Cobalt Oxides and Hydroxides (0.093). Relatedness measures the distance between a country's current exports and each product. The barchart show only products that Saudi Arabia is not specialized in.

Product Space

The product space is a network connecting products that are likely to be co-exported. The product space can be used to predict future exports, since countries are more likely to start exporting products that are related to current exports. Relatedness measures the distance between a product, and all of the products a country currently specializes in.

Relatedness Space

This network shows the products most related to the production structure of Saudi Arabia. These are products that tend to be co-exported with the products that Saudi Arabia exports. Higher relatedness values ​​indicate greater knowledge, which predicts a greater probability of exporting that product in the future.

Espacio de la Afinidad (2023

Diversification Frontier

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Depth

The Complexity-Relatedness diagram compares the risk vs strategic value of a country's potential export oppotunities. Relatedness is predictive of the probability that a country increases its exports in a product. Complexity, is associated with higher levels of income, economic growth, less income inequality, and lower greenhouse emissions.

Frontera de la Diversificación

Economic Complexity Ranking

Methodology
Scale

During the last 20 years Saudi Arabia's⁩ ⁨economy has become relatively more complex, moving from the ⁩⁨36th to the 36th⁩ position in the ECI rank.

These economic complexity rankings use 6 digit exports classified according to the HS96 classification. We consider only countries with population of at least 1 million and exports of at least $1 billion, and products with world trade over $500 million. To explore different rankings and vary these parameters visit the custom rankings section.

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Clasificación de ECI (Trade) por País

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