Arab News, Saturday, Aug 28, 2021 | Muharram 20, 1443
Jadwa revises Saudi 2021 GDP growth higher as non-oil sector improves
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia’s economy will
expand faster than previously forecast this year as non-oil industries continue
their recovery from the pandemic, according to Jadwa Investment.
GDP will grow by 1.8 percent in 2021, a revision
from a previous estimate of 1.3 percent, Jadwa said in a research report on
Wednesday. Non-oil growth will come in at 3.5 percent, driven by the non-oil
private sector, which Jadwa sees rising 4.4 percent, compared to a previous
estimate of 3.1 percent.
“Whilst the rebound is no surprise, some sectors
have performed better than anticipated,” it said. The investment bank attributed
the improvement in the non-oil sector to activities in real estate,
manufacturing, wholesale and retail, and restaurants and hotels.
Despite the overall growth in GDP, Jadwa expects
oil sector GDP “being marginally down year-on-year, at -0.7 percent,” unchanged
from its previous outlook.
Oil prices are expected to increase this year with
Brent averaging $67 per barrel, leading to higher government oil revenue of
SR568 billion in 2021, revised from SR528 billion previously, it said.
“With no changes to government expenditure, we see
the fiscal deficit totalling -SR67 billion (-2.1 percent of GDP), 53 percent
lower than budgeted by the Ministry of Finance,” it said.