Riyadh – Mubasher: Saudi Arabia achieved a trade surplus of SAR 13.48 billion in July 2020, against a trade deficit of SAR 1.03 billion in the previous month.

The kingdom’s merchandise exports hiked to SAR 51.14 billion in July, an increase of 17.6% when compared to SAR 43.49 billion a month earlier, official data showed on Monday.

The Gulf country’s imports declined to SAR 37.66 billion in July from SAR 44.52 billion in June.

Year-on-year (YoY), merchandise exports dropped by 37.6% in July as petroleum exports plunged by SAR 29.18 billion. Non- petroleum exports fell by 8.3% yearly to reach SAR 17.42 billion, whereas increased by 5.1% monthly.

China was the kingdom’s main trading partner during July, with exports of SAR 10.24 billion, followed by Japan and South Korea with SAR 4.82 billion and SAR 4.55 billion, respectively.

Imports tumbled by 30.5% YoY in July, equivalent to SAR 16.52 billion, reaching SAR 37.66 billion, whilst dropped by 15.4% on a monthly basis.

China was Saudi Arabia’s top importer in July with SAR 7.59 billion worth of imports, followed by the US and the UAE with SAR 3.52 billion and SAR 3.19 billion, respectively.