More than 2100 investment licenses issued in third quarter of 2023, with a growth rate of 135.4 percent annually

According to the Saudi Ministry of Investment, over 2100 investment licences were granted in the third quarter of 2023, representing an annual growth rate of 135.4 percent. Licences granted as a part of the effort to combat offenders of the Anti-Commercial Concealment (tasattur) Law are not included in this.

The increase in the number of licences granted, according to the ministry, is indicative of the Kingdom's standing as a desirable location for investments, with significant competitive advantages derived from a stable and encouraging business climate. The ministry released its monthly bulletin on the performance of the most important investment and economic indicators in the Kingdom on Wednesday. The third quarter of 2023 saw good growth rates.

The activity related to social and personal services grew at the fastest pace, 11.8 percent, followed by the wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and lodging (5.4 percent), and the activity related to transportation, storage, and communications (5.1 percent). The ministry's bulletin states that a 1.1 percent increase in residential real estate prices during the third quarter of 2023 contributed to an annual increase in the real estate price index of 0.7 percent. The decrease of 0.3 percent in agricultural real estate and 0.1 percent in commercial real estate has helped to slow the increase in the price index.

According to the report, the market value of shares issued on the main market in the third quarter of 2023 increased by 5.3 percent to about SR11.4 trillion ($3 trillion) from the same period the previous year. At the conclusion of the third quarter of last year, the amount of foreign trade fell by 14.1 percent on an annual basis, and the trade balance fell by 53.8 percent over the same period due to a 24.9 percent reduction in total exports.