Saudi Arabia's services exports increased by 7.9 percent quarter-on-quarter to SR71.3 billion ($18.96 billion) in the first quarter of 2026, driven by strong travel receipts as the Kingdom continues to expand its non-oil economy, according to official data from the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).
Travel Services Lead Export Growth
Travel services remained the largest export category, generating SR44.3 billion, which accounted for approximately 62 percent of total services exports. Within this category, personal travel services comprised 96.6 percent of the total, highlighting the robust performance of tourism and related activities.
Transportation services followed as the second-largest export category, reaching SR10.9 billion. Air transport made up 39.9 percent of transportation exports, while maritime and road transport contributed smaller shares, reflecting the diverse nature of the Kingdom's logistics sector.
Other Key Export Categories
Communications, computer, and information services exports amounted to SR2.6 billion, with communications services accounting for about 50.5 percent of this category, followed by computer and information services at lower shares, GASTAT reported.
Government services exports stood at SR2.6 billion, while other business services totaled SR2.4 billion, led by professional and management consulting. Construction services reached SR2 billion, and financial services contributed SR1.7 billion. The remaining exports were distributed across manufacturing services, insurance and pensions, and personal, cultural, and recreational services.
Services Imports Decline
On the import side, services imports decreased by 6.9 percent to SR111.4 billion in the first quarter from SR119.6 billion in the previous three months. Transportation services led imports at SR31.8 billion, with maritime transport comprising 40.9 percent of that category.
Travel services imports reached SR21.3 billion, with personal travel accounting for approximately 93.8 percent of total imports in this category. Other business services amounted to SR15.8 billion, with professional and management consulting accounting for about 50.4 percent of the total.
Construction services imports reached SR15.1 billion, while government services totaled SR6.9 billion. Insurance and pension services amounted to SR4.8 billion. The remaining services imports were distributed across communications, computer, and information services, manufacturing services, personal, cultural and recreational services, and financial services, according to GASTAT.
Trade Deficit Narrows Amid Economic Diversification
The services trade deficit narrowed as exports increased and imports declined, aligning with broader economic trends under Vision 2030. Earlier this month, GASTAT revealed that Saudi Arabia's real gross domestic product expanded by 3 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting broad-based growth across all major economic activities.
The report added that both oil and non-oil activities in the Kingdom expanded 2.9 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, while government activities grew 1.5 percent. This services performance underscores the Kingdom's successful efforts to boost non-oil revenues through tourism, logistics, and business services.
