Saudi Non-Oil Growth Hits 6-Month High, Jobs Rise

Saudi Arabia's non-oil private sector expanded at its fastest pace in six months during August 2026, while the country's overall unemployment rate fell to 3.1 percent in the first quarter of the year, official economic indicators show.

The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) reading for the non-oil private sector climbed to 53.8 in August 2026, up from 53.1 in July. Any reading above 50 signals expansion, and the latest figure marks the fifth straight month of growth, driven by solid gains in output, new orders, and overall business conditions. The reading remains below the survey's long-run average of about 56.8.

Employment in the non-oil private sector rose for a second consecutive month, while backlogs of work fell for a third month, pointing to spare capacity even as activity increased. Earlier in the year, the index had briefly dipped to 48.8 in March 2026 before rebounding.

Jobless rate at lowest since early 2025

The combined unemployment rate for Saudis and non-Saudis dropped to 3.1 percent in the first quarter of 2026, down from 3.5 percent in the previous quarter and the lowest level since the first quarter of 2025. Among Saudi nationals, the rate fell 0.8 percentage points to 6.4 percent, while the rate for non-Saudis stood at about 1.5 percent.

Government support helped drive the gains. HRDF employment schemes assisted in placing around 329,000 Saudis into jobs during the first half of 2026, while قوى documented more than 419,000 Saudi employment contracts in the second quarter, reflecting stronger formalization of private-sector work.

Non-oil activities grew 2.9 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026 and 0.3 percent quarter-on-quarter. Preliminary estimates show the overall economy expanded by about 4.5 percent in 2025, with nearly 5 percent growth in the final quarter, led mainly by non-oil sectors — a trend closely aligned with the goals of رؤية السعودية 2030.

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