* Talal Al-Sayah from Riyadh
The value of foreign investment revenues in Saudi Arabia during the first nine months of last year 2018 were amounted to about 27.91 billion riyals, compared to 20.15 billion riyals in the same period of 2017, registering a jump of 38.6 percent, equivalent to 7.77 billion riyals.
According to the analysis of economic reports unit in the newspaper "AlEqtisadiah" and based on SAMA data, the average return on foreign investment in Saudi Arabia from total investments by the end of the first nine months of last year was about 1.06 percent, compared with 0.51 per cent during the same period in 2017.
The data for the period 2018 and 2017, on which the report unit analysis was based, prepares initial data for SAMA, will be updated after the completion of the field survey of foreign investment. The data for the third quarter 2018 is estimated.
The value of foreign investments in Saudi Arabia by the end of the third quarter of 2018 were about 1.485 trillion riyals - an estimate of SAMA – that is registering a growth of 10.5 percent at 141 billion riyals compared to 1.343 trillion riyals- preliminary data - at the end of the same period of 2017.
Foreign investments are divided into three main types with five sub-branches.
The main branches are foreign direct investment, which accounted for 59.3 per cent of total foreign investments by the end of the third quarter of 2018, at a value of SR 879.81 billion (estimated data).
Portfolio investments is representing 22.9% of total foreign investments by the end of the third quarter 2018, reaching about SR 340.29 billion (estimated data).
Portfolio investments is divided into two parts: the first is debt securities, which amounted to about 204.57 billion riyals (estimated data), and the second is property rights and investment fund shares, which amounted to about 135.72 billion riyals (estimated data).
The third type of foreign investment in Saudi Arabia is "other investments," which valued at SR 264.35 billion (estimated data), accounting for 17.8% of the total value of foreign investments in Saudi Arabia by the end of the third quarter 2018.
"Other investments" are divided into three sections: the first is "loans" that were amounting to 114.99 billion riyals (estimated data), the second is "currency and deposits" that worth SR 94.31 billion (estimated data), and the third is "other accounts payable" that is amounting to SR 55.05 billion (estimated data).
The value of foreign investment revenues in Saudi Arabia during the first quarter of 2018 were amounted to about 8.189 billion riyals, accounting for 0.9 per cent of total foreign investment.
In the second quarter of 2018, the value of foreign investment revenues in Saudi Arabia were amounted to about SR 9.943 billion, accounting for 1.1% of total foreign investments.
Revenues for the third quarter of 2018 were amounted to about SR 9.28 billion, accounting for 1.1 per cent of total foreign investment.
* Economic Reports Unit
