Saudi Arabia’s budget maintains financial stability: Al-Jadaan

Mohammed Al-Jadaan, Minister of Finance and Acting Minister of Economy and Planning, said that despite the negative impact on economy in H1 2020 and the rise in budget deficit above estimates, the outlook seems better than expected, amid the actions taken by the government to curb the COVID-19 outbreak. 

The Saudi budget affirms the Kingdom’s keenness to maintain financial stability, and enhance the principle of transparency and disclosure. It also affirms the Kingdom’s effective response to the pandemic.  

Elsewhere, Al-Jadaan highlighted Saudi Arabia’s keenness to boost gross domestic product (GDP) in the medium term.

Al-Jadaan pointed out that the government has taken strict, swift and decisive decisions in harmony between government agencies to give priority to human health first.  

Elsewhere, he shrugged off any plans in the short or medium term to reconsider the value-added tax (VAT). 

The Kingdom’s real GDP is expected to grow by 3.2% next year driven by a continuous economic recovery.