IMF expects Middle East growth to decline due to KSA

Shafaq News / The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted on Wednesday that the growth of Middle Eastern countries will decline 3.5% in 2023 due to slowing growth in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), OPEC's top oil exporter.

According to the IMF's monthly report for July, growth in the Middle East is expected to decline from 5.4% in 2022 to 2.5% in 2023, a decrease of 0.4 percent points from prior predictions.

According to the report, the decline is attributable to a steeper than predicted slowdown in KSA growth from 8.7% in 2022 to 1.9% in 2023, a negative adjustment of 1.2 percentage points.

"The downgrade in KSA's forecast for 2023 is due to oil production cuts announced in April and July in line with an agreement concluded through OPEC+, while private investment, including those resulting from the implementation of "major projects", continues to support strong non-oil GDP growth."