The kingdom has been prodding trade partners to invest more heavily amid low oil prices that have led to growing budget deficits

Wang Dongzhen/Xinhua via Getty Images
Khalid Al-Falih, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Investment
Saudi Arabia appears to be rebounding from a slowdown in foreign investment that has strained government budgets and forced cuts in some of the kingdom’s most ambitious construction projects.
First-quarter figures released on Sunday showed that inflows of foreign direct investment reached $6.4 billion, a 24% jump from the same period in 2024 and the best start to a year since 2022.
Saudi Arabia has been prodding trade partners to invest more heavily in the kingdom amid low oil prices that have led to growing budget deficits.
Slowing FDI over the past three years is enabling the UAE to overtake Saudi Arabia this year in the value of awarded construction projects, Bloomberg reports, citing data provided by the Middle East Economic Digest.
Halfway through 2025, the UAE has approved an estimated $31 billion in contracts, compared to Saudi Arabia’s $20.6 billion. If the trend continues, it will be the first time the UAE comes out ahead in awarded contracts since 2018.