Saudi Arabia's non-oil sector sees decade-high growth

RIYADH, Feb 4 (Arab News): Saudi Arabia's non-oil private sector saw its strongest growth for a decade in January, with the Kingdom's Purchasing Managers' Index rising to 60.5, driven by surging new orders and business activity, a new survey showed.
The seasonally adjusted Riyad Bank PMI, released by S&P Global, jumped from 58.4 in December to its highest level in ten years, signaling robust momentum in the non-oil economy at the start of 2025.
This comes as Saudi Arabia's push to expand its non-oil sector delivered a 19.7 percent year-on-year rise in exports in November to SR26.92 billion ($7.18 billion), with Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Al-Ibrahim revealing that such activities now account for 52 percent of the Kingdom's gross domestic product, further bolstering its economic transformation.
Saudi Arabia's PMI in January surpassed that of other countries in the region such as Egypt and Kuwait, indicating that the Kingdom's non-oil sector growth is in line with the goals outlined in Vision 2030. "This strong performance underscores the resilience of the non-oil private sector, fueled by surging new orders and a significant rise in business output.