Saudi Arabia's real gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter shrank 1.7% from a year earlier, preliminary government data showed on Sunday, as a decline in oil activities continued to weigh on overall growth.
The kingdom's GDP shrank 3.7% in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The decline in the first quarter was the third consecutive quarter of
year-on-year contraction in the kingdom, hurt by cuts to oil production and
lower crude prices.
Oil activities were down 11.2% in the first quarter versus
the previous year, estimates from the General Authority for Statistics showed,
while non-oil GDP grew 3.4% year on year and government activities increased
2%.