Merchandise exports to economies in the Arab World in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Merchandise exports to economies in the Arab World was 16.8% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Merchandise exports to economies in the Arab World in Saudi Arabia, 1964–2023
Source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total merchandise exports.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 16.8% for merchandise exports to economies in the arab world in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.3% on the previous year and up 26.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise exports to economies in the arab world in Saudi Arabia peaked at 17.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 3.5%, in 1976.
That places Saudi Arabia 23rd out of 205 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 60 years of available data.
Merchandise exports to economies in the Arab World in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % of total merchandise exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 13.9% | — |
| 1965 | 11.6% | -16.2% |
| 1966 | 9.1% | -21.8% |
| 1967 | 8.5% | -6.0% |
| 1968 | 7.2% | -16.1% |
| 1969 | 6.4% | -11.2% |
| 1970 | 6.2% | -2.7% |
| 1971 | 5.0% | -18.7% |
| 1972 | 4.0% | -20.4% |
| 1973 | 4.0% | -0.9% |
| 1974 | 4.2% | +5.0% |
| 1975 | 3.8% | -9.2% |
| 1976 | 3.5% | -7.0% |
| 1977 | 4.1% | +17.0% |
| 1978 | 3.9% | -5.7% |
| 1979 | 4.0% | +2.7% |
| 1980 | 3.8% | -5.2% |
| 1981 | 5.1% | +34.1% |
| 1982 | 5.6% | +9.9% |
| 1983 | 6.9% | +24.1% |
| 1984 | 7.7% | +10.8% |
| 1985 | 9.7% | +26.6% |
| 1986 | 9.2% | -5.4% |
| 1987 | 9.1% | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 8.9% | -1.8% |
| 1989 | 10.3% | +15.5% |
| 1990 | 10.6% | +3.0% |
| 1991 | 9.7% | -9.0% |
| 1992 | 7.9% | -18.1% |
| 1993 | 8.8% | +10.7% |
| 1994 | 8.9% | +1.3% |
| 1995 | 9.8% | +10.7% |
| 1996 | 9.9% | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 10.8% | +8.4% |
| 1998 | 12.5% | +16.3% |
| 1999 | 10.5% | -16.4% |
| 2000 | 13.2% | +25.8% |
| 2001 | 13.2% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 13.2% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 13.2% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 13.2% | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 13.2% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 13.2% | -0.0% |
| 2007 | 13.2% | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 13.2% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 13.2% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 13.2% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 13.2% | -0.0% |
| 2012 | 13.3% | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 13.3% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 13.3% | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 13.3% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 13.3% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 16.8% | +26.2% |
| 2018 | 14.2% | -15.5% |
| 2019 | 14.5% | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 17.6% | +20.9% |
| 2021 | 17.2% | -1.9% |
| 2022 | 16.1% | -6.6% |
| 2023 | 16.8% | +4.3% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 16.8% is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.2%, 7.7× the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 16.8% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 10.7%, 1.6× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 9.4% | 6.4% | 13.9% | 6 |
| 1970s | 4.3% | 3.5% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.6% | 3.8% | 10.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.0% | 7.9% | 12.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 13.2% | 13.2% | 13.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.9% | 13.2% | 16.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.9% | 16.1% | 17.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More private sector data for Saudi Arabia
- Merchandise trade 44.2% (2025)
- Food imports 13.0% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 70.5% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 254.06 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 1.9% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 15.9% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 310.67 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 8,403 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2433 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 1.69 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise exports to economies in the arab world in Saudi Arabia?
- Merchandise exports to economies in the arab world in Saudi Arabia was 16.8% in 2023, according to Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest merchandise exports to economies in the arab world recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 17.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest merchandise exports to economies in the arab world recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.5% in 1976.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for merchandise exports to economies in the arab world?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 23rd out of 205 countries with data for 2023.
- Is merchandise exports to economies in the arab world rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 26.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), published as part of Merchandise exports to economies in the Arab World (% of total merchandise exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 60 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Merchandise exports to economies in the Arab World are the sum of merchandise exports by the reporting economy to economies in the Arab World. Data are expressed as a percentage of total merchandise exports by the economy. Data are computed only if at least half of the economies in the partner country group had non-missing data.