Riyadh – Mubasher: Saudi Arabia registered a 48% year-on-year increase, or SAR 94.26 billion, in the value of merchandise exports during the third quarter of 2018, the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) reported.
The kingdom’s exports amounted to SAR 290.6 billion during the three-month period ended September, up from SAR 196.3 billion in Q3-17, the GASTAT added.
The state-run statistics body attributed the third-quarter growth of merchandise exports to a rise in oil export revenues.
Quarter-on-quarter, the GCC country’s merchandise exports rose 2.8% or SAR 7.95 billion by the end of September.
Merchandise exports include oil and non-oil exports.
Oil exports
Saudi Arabia’s oil exports levelled up SAR 82.55 billion, or 55.3%, to SAR 231.95 billion in Q3-18, compared to SAR 149.41 billion in the year-ago period.
Quarter-on-quarter, oil exports’ revenues grew SAR 9.33 billion or 4.2% from July to September.
Non-oil exports
The kingdom’s non-oil exports increased by SAR 11.72 billion, or 25%, to SAR 58.6 billion in Q3-18, against SAR 46.9 billion in the prior-year period.
Quarter-on-quarter, Saudi non-oil exports’ returns fell 2.3% or SAR 1.38 billion during the July-September period.
