Net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in Saudi Arabia rose in Q1 2025 by 44 percent to SAR22.2 billion ($5.9 billion) compared to the same quarter last year, despite a 7 percent decrease from Q4 of 2024, according to new official figures.
The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) reported in its Foreign Direct Investment Statistics bulletin for Q1 2025 that FDI outflows from the Kingdom totaled approximately SAR1.8 billion in Q1 2025, reflecting a 54 percent decline from the same quarter in 2024, while showing an increase of 7 percent from Q4 of 2024.
Conversely, inflows into the Kingdom reached about SAR24.0 billion, a 24 percent increase from SAR19.4 billion ($5.2 billion) in Q1 2024, although they declined by 6 percent from Q4 2024.
According to GASTAT, FDI indicates a long-term relationship and a permanent interest of economic entities residing in an economy other than the Saudi economy. This implies that an individual foreign investor or a group of foreign investors owns 10 percent or more of the voting power of shareholder rights.
FDI inflows decreased by 19 percent to $20.7 billion (SAR77.63 billion) in 2024, marking the lowest figure since 2020. In 2021, Saudi Arabia attracted $32.5 billion in FDI, followed by $31.7 billion in 2022 and $25.6 billion in 2023.
Read more: Saudi Arabia sees sharp increase in FDI to $65 billion after pandemic: Report
Saudi Arabia’s global ranking in FDI
FDI inflows to Saudi Arabia reached SAR96 billion in 2023, according to data from the Saudi Ministry of Investment.
FDI inflows declined by 19 percent year-on-year (YoY) compared to 2022, when they totaled SAR119 billion, including a SAR55 billion Aramco deal. Without the Aramco deal, the increase would have been around 50 percent. In 2023, Saudi Arabia ranked 11th globally in net FDI inflows and 16th in FDI stock among G20 nations. The Kingdom also placed second in the growth rate of net FDI inflows and fourth in FDI stock growth, excluding the Aramco deal.
In consultation with the International Monetary Fund, Saudi Arabia adopted a new methodology for calculating foreign direct investment statistics in October 2023.
This was achieved through cooperation between the Ministry of Investment, the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), and the Saudi Central Bank, adhering to the standards of the International Monetary Fund’s Balance of Payments Manual. In 2023, FDI inflows made up 2.4 percent of nominal GDP, meeting the National Investment Strategy (NIS) target.
Riyadh led in FDI inflows for 2023 with SAR33 billion, followed by the Eastern Province at SAR28.5 billion, and then Madinah.
The manufacturing sector topped FDI with SAR34.4 billion.
FDI stock increased by 13 percent in 2023, reaching SAR897 billion, up from SAR791 billion in 2022. By the end of 2023, the manufacturing sector topped the FDI stock with around SAR258.7 billion. Below is the ranking of the key sectors contributing to the FDI stock:
The United States led FDI stock in the Kingdom with SAR202 billion (23 percent), followed by the UAE, UK, and France at 12 percent, 8 percent, and 7 percent, respectively.
