DUBAI: Kuwait’s gross domestic product contracted 9.9 percent in 2020, compared with growth of 0.4 percent in 2019, mainly because of last year’s sharp drop in oil prices, state news agency KUNA reported on Sunday.
Kuwait, which makes half its revenues from oil, had its finances squeezed by an oil price crash and by the COVID-19 pandemic, while a draft law that would allow it to tap international debt has stalled amid disagreement between successive parliaments and cabinets.
The International Monetary Fund estimated in April that Kuwait’s GDP contracted 8 percent in 2020.
KUNA based its report on Central Bank of Kuwait’s governor, Mohammad Al-Hashel, who cited preliminary estimates and statistics and said the institution used all the tools available to it to blunt the pandemic’s impact.
He said preliminary estimates and statistics also showed the headline inflation rate increased to about 2.1 percent in 2020 from about 1.1 percent in 2019.
Kuwait’s population, which mostly comprises expatriate workers and their families, declined by 2.2 percent in 2020 after growing 3.3 percent in 2019.
Sources told Reuters in April that Kuwait has reached an agreement with state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation under which the company will pay the government billions in accrued dividends, part of government efforts to cover the deficit.
Kuwait’s economy contracted by 9.9% in 2020
Kuwait’s economy contracted by 9.9% in 2020
Saudi businesses step up AI use as adoption reaches 27.6%: GASTAT
RIYADH: Artificial intelligence adoption among businesses in Saudi Arabia rose to 27.6 percent in 2024, reflecting a steady expansion in the use of advanced digital tools across the Kingdom’s private sector, according to official data.
The information and communications sector recorded the highest uptake of AI technologies at 52.8 percent, followed by finance and insurance at 44.7 percent and education at 42.1 percent, the General Authority for Statistics said in its Establishments’ ICT Access and Usage Statistics 2024 report.
This data underscores the growing digital maturity of the Kingdom’s private sector, with certain industries leading the transition toward advanced technologies.
The professional services sector showed a notable 39.2 percent adoption rate, while other sectors, such as real estate at 28.2 percent, wholesale and retail trade at 25 percent, and manufacturing at 26 percent, reflected varying levels of engagement with AI tools.
In contrast, sectors like construction at 25.8 percent, human health and social work at 29.9 percent, and arts, entertainment and recreation at 20.1 percent lagged behind, highlighting differences in AI integration across the economy.
Other sectors showing moderate uptake of AI technologies include transportation and storage at 38.3 percent and mining and quarrying at 32.4 percent.
Meanwhile, industries such as administrative and support services at 25.2 percent, and electricity and gas supply at 25.7 percent, reported lower levels of AI adoption compared to digital frontrunners.
The report also revealed that internet access among establishments across Saudi Arabia reached 98 percent in 2024, marking a 0.3 percentage point increase over the previous year.
Social media usage was reported by 63 percent of establishments, and 76.3 percent of businesses used internet platforms to conduct electronic banking transactions.
In addition to AI, the adoption of cloud computing technologies grew significantly. A total of 46.8 percent of establishments reported using cloud services, with the most common uses being ready-made office applications at 53.5 percent, email services at 50.3 percent, and file storage at 41.1 percent.
Meanwhile, Internet of Things technologies were widely employed for building security at 68.4 percent, energy management at 36.5 percent, and maintenance purposes at 21.1 percent.
The Establishments’ ICT Access and Usage Survey is conducted using internationally aligned methodologies and follows the Statistical Business Process Guide and standards set by the UN Conference on Trade and Development, GASTAT stated.
