RIYADH: Saudi unemployment fell to 11.3 percent in the second quarter of this year, down from 11.7 percent in the three months to April, according to investment bank Jadwa.
The Riyad-based firm said the fall mirrors the economy’s expansionary trend in the first half of this year and expects unemployment to decline even further in the final half of 2021 and 2022.
Jadwa’s report said the economy’s upswing was largely driven by a booming non-oil private sector, which experienced a 7.5 percent annual growth rate in the first six months of 2021.
The sector was a major factor in pushing unemployment numbers down and is expected to continue this course for the rest of the year, Jadwa added.
Additionally, a number of developments are likely to have desirable effects on the Saudi labor market, including improving vaccination rates, as well as possible employment opportunities in the tourism sector.
