Data from the General Authority for Statistics in Saudi Arabia revealed on Sunday that merchandise exports in October 2021 increased by 90% compared to October 2020, when international trade was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and travel restrictions. The report indicated that the value of merchandise exports reached 106.2 billion riyals in October 2021, up from 55.9 billion riyals in October 2020, largely due to a rise in oil exports by 45.5 billion riyals, representing an increase of 123.1%.
The value of oil exports was 82.39 billion riyals in October 2021, compared to approximately 36.93 billion riyals in October 2020. The proportion of oil exports from total exports rose from 66.1% in October 2020 to 77.6% in October 2021. Compared to September 2021, total merchandise exports increased by 11.5 billion riyals, or 12.2%.
Meanwhile, non-oil exports recorded a growth of 25.5% from October 2020, reaching 23.8 billion riyals compared to 19.0 billion riyals. However, the value of non-oil exports decreased by 1.5 billion riyals, or 5.9%, compared to September 2021.
Regarding imports, they increased by 7.6% or 3.3 billion riyals in October 2021, amounting to 46.3 billion riyals, compared to 43.0 billion riyals in October 2020. This rise was attributed to higher commodity prices compared to October 2020, while the value of imports fell by 1.1 billion riyals, or 2.4%, from the previous month, September 2021.
The ratio of non-oil exports to imports increased to 51.4% in October 2021, up from 44.1% in October 2020, reflecting the significant rise in non-oil exports. The trade surplus reached 59.899 billion riyals in October, compared to 12.867 billion riyals in the same month of 2020, an increase of 365.5%.
