Saudi Arabia records SAR 29 bln trade surplus in August

Saudi Arabia's trade surplus widened to SAR 29.24 billion in August 2017, from SAR 15.34 billion in the same month last year, official data from the General Authority for Statistics compiled by Argaam showed. 

Trade surplus grew by around SAR 8.5 billion compared to the previous month.

Total exports rose 11 percent year-on-year (YoY) to SAR 67.34 billion in August, while imports fell 16 percent YoY to SAR 38.09 billion.

The increase in exports was driven by a 13 percent YoY jump in oil exports, which accounted for 74.7 percent of the Kingdom’s total exports, to SAR 50.30 billion in the same period.

Non-oil exports also increased 6 percent YoY to SAR 17.02 billion.

China was the top exporter to Saudi Arabia in August, followed by the United States, the United Arab Emirates and South Korea.

The top ten exporters accounted for 56.3 percent of the Kingdom's total imports.

Meanwhile, China overtook Japan as Saudi Arabia’s top importer in August. India and South Korea took the third and fourth spots, respectively.

The top ten importers accounted for 70.2 percent of the Kingdom's total exports.