Saudi Arabia’s economy shrank by 7% in Q2 showing depth of coronavirus hit

Saudi Arabia’s economy shrank by seven per cent in the second quarter, a sign of how deeply the new coronavirus hit both the oil and non-oil sectors, official data showed on Wednesday.

The world’s largest oil exporter is facing its worst-ever economic decline after the Covid-19 pandemic curbed global crude demand and measures to contain the coronavirus hurt domestic demand.

“The private sector and the government sector recorded a negative growth rate of 10.1 per cent and 3.5 per cent, respectively,” said the General Authority for Statistics.

In the first quarter, Saudi Arabia posted a one per cent economic contraction, as that only captured part of the oil price collapse and the pandemic impact, which escalated in March.