Saudi Arabia Direct Investment Report
The Ministry of Investment recently published its “Saudi Arabia Direct Investment Report”, which details FDI figures over the years categorized by national economic activity classification, investor countries, administrative regions, financial instruments, and economic and geographic clusters.
Through its 2030 Vision Programs and ambitious initiatives it has helped improve the Kingdom’s FDI figures and reaffirm Saudi Arabia as an attractive investment destination globally. In turn, these developments have positively contributed to achieving the targets set by the National Investment Strategy.
By 2030, Saudi Vision 2030 aims to achieve the following targets: FDI inflow as a percentage of GDP to be 5.7%, private sector contribution as a percentage of GDP to stand at 65%, SME contribution to GDP to stand at 35%, and non-oil exports as a percentage of non-oil GDP to stand at 50%.
In 2023, FDI inflows amounted to approximately SAR 96 billion, exceeding the National Investment Strategy (NIS) target of SAR 83 billion by 16%. The FDI inflows as a percentage of nominal GDP reached 2.4% in 2023, achieving this NIS target.
Among the G20 countries, Saudi Arabia ranked 11th in terms of FDI net inflow in 2023, and 16th in terms of FDI stock for the same year. As for growth rates, Saudi Arabia ranked 4th in terms of FDI stock growth among G20 countries and 2nd (excluding one-off Aramco deal**) in terms of FDI net inflow in 2023.
Looking at FDI data from 2017 to 2023, Saudi Arabia’s FDI stock grew by approximately 80% in 2023 compared to 2017. Similarly, FDI inflow increased by more than 240%in 2023 compared to 2017.
Regarding FDI Inflow by sector, we find that manufacturing, financial and insurance activities, and construction are the highest sectors that have received FDI inflow. The three sectors
recorded SAR 75 BN, or 78% of the total FDI inflow in 2023.
Looking at FDI net inflow by regions in Saudi Arabia, the Riyadh region came first with the highest FDI net inflow of SAR 28 BN in 2023, followed by the Eastern region with SAR 25 BN, and by the Madinah region with SAR 23 BN..
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has achieved remarkable strides when it comes to FDI, fueled by the diversification of the economy as outlined in Vision 2030. It can be said with confidence that the Kingdom is on its way to achieving its set targets, or even surpassing them.
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