Foreign Investments in Saudi Arabia Exceed SR3 Trillion by 1Q 2025
Foreign investments in the Saudi economy have surged to record levels, exceeding SR3 trillion in the first quarter of 2025.
JEDDAH — The inflow of foreign investments into the Saudi economy has reached a new milestone, surpassing SR3 trillion by the end of the first quarter of 2025.
According to data provided by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), foreign investments during this period showed a notable increase of 16 percent compared to the same period in 2024, totaling SR3,048.5 billion.
This significant rise underscores the growing attractiveness of Saudi Arabia as an investment destination for international investors.Foreign direct investment (FDI) constitutes a substantial portion of these inflows, representing 33 percent of the total and amounting to approximately SR995.5 billion.
Portfolio investments, which encompass equity holdings, investment fund shares, and debt securities, have also seen considerable growth, valued at SR1,244.6 billion.
The remaining portion consists of other types of investments worth SR808.4 billion.The data from the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) further highlights the dynamics of foreign investment inflows into Saudi Arabia during 2025's first quarter.
Inflows escalated by 24 percent compared to previous periods, reaching a substantial SR24 billion (approximately $6.4 billion).
Conversely, outflows declined significantly, amounting to only SR1.8 billion ($480,000), indicating a marked decrease of 54 percent.
This disparity resulted in net foreign investment inflows of SR22.2 billion ($5.9 billion), reflecting a considerable 44 percent increase from the same quarter in the previous year.Furthermore, during the year 2024, Saudi Arabia saw FDI inflows amounting to approximately $26 billion, surpassing the interim targets set by the government.
This performance reaffirms the upward trend in the attractiveness of the Saudi economy for foreign direct investment, despite a decline in outflows compared to the same period last year.
According to data provided by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), foreign investments during this period showed a notable increase of 16 percent compared to the same period in 2024, totaling SR3,048.5 billion.
This significant rise underscores the growing attractiveness of Saudi Arabia as an investment destination for international investors.Foreign direct investment (FDI) constitutes a substantial portion of these inflows, representing 33 percent of the total and amounting to approximately SR995.5 billion.
Portfolio investments, which encompass equity holdings, investment fund shares, and debt securities, have also seen considerable growth, valued at SR1,244.6 billion.
The remaining portion consists of other types of investments worth SR808.4 billion.The data from the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) further highlights the dynamics of foreign investment inflows into Saudi Arabia during 2025's first quarter.
Inflows escalated by 24 percent compared to previous periods, reaching a substantial SR24 billion (approximately $6.4 billion).
Conversely, outflows declined significantly, amounting to only SR1.8 billion ($480,000), indicating a marked decrease of 54 percent.
This disparity resulted in net foreign investment inflows of SR22.2 billion ($5.9 billion), reflecting a considerable 44 percent increase from the same quarter in the previous year.Furthermore, during the year 2024, Saudi Arabia saw FDI inflows amounting to approximately $26 billion, surpassing the interim targets set by the government.
This performance reaffirms the upward trend in the attractiveness of the Saudi economy for foreign direct investment, despite a decline in outflows compared to the same period last year.
