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2025-10-28 13:25:37
Saudi Arabia's Economic Structure Reaches a Historic Turning Point: 1. Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid al-Falih announced that the kingdom's economy has achieved a milestone transformation, with over half (50.6%) of economic activity now "fully decoupled from oil," and this proportion continues to grow. Government revenue sources have significantly diversified, with 40% now coming from non-oil sectors, a radical shift from its previous near-total reliance on oil revenues. 2. To accelerate economic diversification, Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in future industries: Artificial Intelligence (AI): Designated as a new core growth area, Saudi Arabia plans to become a "key investor" in AI application and model development and build globally competitive hyperscale data centers. PwC predicts that AI could generate over $135 billion in benefits for Saudi Arabia by 2030. 3. Tourism: The tourism sector is experiencing strong growth, with its contribution to GDP increasing from 3% in 2019 to 5% in 2024. The goal is to increase this contribution to 10% by 2030 and ultimately to 20% to build a more sustainable economic structure. The Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, is the core implementer of this transformation strategy. Leveraging oil revenues, the fund has actively invested in non-oil sectors through acquisitions of technology companies (such as Electronic Arts), the establishment of the SoftBank Vision Fund, and the acquisition of Newcastle United Football Club. The PIF has grown sixfold, deploying nearly $1 trillion in capital across strategic sectors nationwide. This ensures the government has sufficient financial resources to maintain public spending and continue its transformation efforts despite oil price fluctuations.
