The kingdom is likely to be one of the world’s fastest-growing economies this year, the IMF says
© Getty Images / Tim E White
High oil prices will likely drive Saudi Arabia’s economic growth to outpace that of the United States this year, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In a report published on Wednesday, the IMF predicted that the kingdom’s GDP will grow by 7.6% in 2022, the fastest rate of expansion in nearly a decade. Meanwhile, the US is projected to see high inflation until 2023, with estimates of real domestic GDP growth at 2.3%, less than half of last year’s rate of 5.7%.
Saudi GDP growth follows an economic hit from the Covid pandemic in 2020, when its economy contracted by 3.4%, compared to 2.3% in the US.
“Saudi Arabia is likely to be one of the world’s fastest-growing economies this year as sweeping pro-business reforms and a sharp rise in oil prices and production power recovery from a pandemic-induced recession,” the report said.
According to the IMF, the economic outlook will depend on whether the kingdom overspends its extra oil revenue.
The fund also noted that the US economy will be dealing with a number of headwinds, with inflation expected to average 6.6% this year, down from the current 8.5% rate. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is expected to maintain 2.8% average inflation through the year.
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