Saudi Arabia Hits Record SAR515B in Non-Oil Exports 2024

In 2024, Saudi Arabia’s non-oil exports reached a record SAR515 billion. This is the highest amount in the country's history. It also means a 13% increase compared to 2023, and more than double (113%) the value since the Kingdom started its Vision 2030 plan.

All parts of non-oil exports saw strong growth. The total value of goods (called "merchandise exports") rose to SAR217 billion, which is 4% higher than the year before. This includes a 2% increase in petrochemical exports and a 9% rise in other non-petrochemical goods.

A big part of the success came from re-exports — this is when Saudi Arabia brings in goods from other countries and then ships them out again. These re-exports reached SAR90 billion in 2024. That’s a huge jump of 205% since Vision 2030 started.

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Service exports — like tourism, transportation, and business services — also hit a new high of SAR207 billion. This is 14% more than 2023 and 220% more than in 2016, when Vision 2030 was launched.

Abdulrahman Althukair, the head of the Saudi Export Development Authority, said this great achievement is because of the country's ongoing work to grow the economy in different ways, not just through oil. He explained that they are helping Saudi companies reach new markets and become stronger exporters. They do this through training, support programs, promotions, and expert advice. All of this supports Vision 2030, which aims to make non-oil exports a key part of Saudi Arabia’s economy.

In 2024, petrochemical goods made up the biggest share of Saudi exports — SAR149 billion, or 68% of all goods exported. These exports grew by 2% in both value and weight compared to 2023.

Other non-petrochemical goods reached SAR69 billion, or 32% of total goods exports. This is the highest value in recent years. Over 205 Saudi products — including food, dairy, minerals, and building materials — were exported in record numbers. Fertilizer exports also did very well, with a 5% increase in weight since last year and a five-times increase in value since Vision 2030 began.

The re-export sector had a big year too. In 2024, Saudi Arabia re-exported goods worth SAR90 billion. That’s a 205% increase since 2016, a 42% increase from last year, and a 114% rise since 2019. One of the main reasons for this growth was the re-export of mobile phones, which reached SAR25 billion — more than double the value from 2023.

The new integrated logistics zone at King Khalid International Airport helped make this possible. It improved the supply chain and made re-exporting easier and faster.

Most of the re-exported items were machinery, electronics, vehicles, and spare parts — making up 84% of all re-exports. Aircraft parts also saw big growth, increasing from SAR1.6 billion in 2022 to over SAR2 billion in 2024.

In 2024, Saudi Arabia exported goods, services, and re-exports to more than 180 countries. 37 of those countries had record-high import numbers from Saudi Arabia. These include the UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Oman, Algeria, Spain, France, Poland, Libya, and Syria. Other countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Morocco, Pakistan, Nigeria, Germany, Greece, and Bulgaria also had record import amounts.

The services sector did especially well. Saudi Arabia exported SAR207 billion worth of services in 2024. That’s a 14% increase from 2023 and a 220% rise since 2016. Travel and tourism were the biggest contributors to this success. Since 2016, travel exports have grown by 270%.

In 2024, about 30 million international tourists visited Saudi Arabia. This helped increase travel exports by 150% compared to 2019. Travel services made up 74% of all service exports. Tourist numbers in 2024 were 69% higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic. Tourism income also rose by 148% compared to 2019.

Saudi Arabia had the fastest tourist number growth among G20 countries in the first seven months of 2024 — 73% higher than the same time in 2019. The transportation sector also helped, making up 12% of service exports and growing by 5% compared to 2023.