RIYADH — Personal remittances of foreigners residing in Saudi Arabia dropped 7.3 percent reaching SR11.6 billion in July 2022 compared to the same period in 2021 when it stood at SR12.5 billion. On a monthly basis, the total personal transfers of expatriates recorded 12 percent decrease compared to June 2022 when it reached SR13.2 billion. Meanwhile, the remittances of Saudis abroad shot up 49 percent to SR6.15 billion in July 2022, compared to SR4.13 billion in July 2021. On a monthly basis, remittances of Saudis abroad decreased by 8.8 percent when it stood at SR6.74 billion in June 2022. Personal remittances of expatriates rose by 2.79 percent or about SR4.18 billion in 2021 reaching SR153.87 billion compared to SR149.69 billion in 2020. The value of remittances amounted to SR156.86 billion in 2021 and recorded the highest value over the period of six years since 2015. It is noteworthy that Saudi Arabia started implementing programs to Saudize jobs in major sectors that were hitherto controlled by expatriate workers with the aim of reducing unemployment rates and creating more job opportunities for young Saudi men and women.
