Saudi Arabia explores real estate technologies to diversify national income 

The summit aimed at encouraging the real estate technology sector in the Kingdom. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, the minister of municipal and rural affairs and housing, who is also chairman of the Saudi Real Estate Authority, inaugurated the event. SPA
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Updated 07 November 2023
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Saudi Arabia explores real estate technologies to diversify national income 

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is looking at opening new markets that diversify national income through real estate technologies, said a top government official. 

Speaking at the Saudi Proptech Summit that concluded on Tuesday, Real Estate General Authority CEO Saud Al-Hammad said integrating technology with real estate is a global trend expected to help create an investment-friendly environment. 

Moreover, it also has the potential to serve the Kingdom, which is diversifying its economy away from oil, he added.

The authority is also working toward creating legislation to attract more investors into Saudi Arabia and further contribute to the Kingdom’s economic diversification journey. 

According to a US-based research firm Tracxn, the Kingdom has about 38 real estate tech startups, including Wasalt, Vibes, Aqaraz and Nuzul. 

While Wasalt is an online platform for buying, selling and renting properties, Vibes offers a virtual reality experience for property viewing.   

Nuzul, on the other hand, provides property management solutions for residential and commercial assets. 

The summit aimed at encouraging the real estate technology sector in the Kingdom. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, the minister of municipal and rural affairs and housing, who is also chairman of the Saudi Real Estate Authority, inaugurated the event. 

During the event, Al-Hogail launched the Real Estate Registry Platform, which combines digital services such as registering mortgages and adding real estate rights and obligations, among other services, under one platform. 

The two-day event featured dialogue sessions and interactive workshops with the participation of over 25 speakers from 20 different countries. 

The primary goal of the summit was to advance knowledge in the domain of real estate technology within the Saudi market and bolster investments in this sector. 

A real estate tech exhibition featuring local and international real estate and technology companies was also organized as a part of the summit. 


Saudi industrial output rises 8.9% in December: GASTAT 

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Saudi industrial output rises 8.9% in December: GASTAT 

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s industrial production rose 8.9 percent in December from a year earlier, driven by stronger mining and manufacturing activity, signaling continued momentum in the Kingdom’s non-oil and energy sectors. 

The Industrial Production Index reached 113.6 in December, up from 104.3 a year earlier, the General Authority for Statistics said.  

The latest IPI figures underscore continued momentum in the Kingdom’s industrial sector as Saudi Arabia pursues economic diversification under its Vision 2030 agenda. 

In its latest report, GASTAT stated: “Preliminary results indicate an increase of 8.9 percent in the IPOI in December 2025 compared to the same month of the previous year, supported by the rise in mining and quarrying activity, manufacturing activity and water supply, sewerage and waste management and remediation activities.”  

Mining and quarrying activity — the largest component of the index — increased 13.2 percent year on year after Saudi Arabia raised oil production to 10.1 million barrels per day from 8.9 million bpd a year earlier. Manufacturing expanded 3.2 percent, supported by a 13.4 percent rise in chemicals output and a 7.3 percent increase in food production. 

The sub-index of electricity, gas, steam and air-conditioning supply activity recorded an annual decrease of 2.5 percent. 

The sub-index of water supply, sewerage and waste management and remediation activities increased 9.4 percent. 

Compared to November, Saudi Arabia’s IPI recorded a marginal decline of 0.1 percent. 

On a monthly basis, the sub-index of mining and quarrying activity increased 0.3 percent. 

Manufacturing activities also rose 0.3 percent in December compared to the previous month, driven by a 2.8 percent increase in the manufacture of chemicals and chemical products. 

Compared to November, the manufacture of food products increased 9.6 percent in December. 

Overall, the index of oil activities advanced 10.1 percent year on year in December, while non-oil activities increased 5.8 percent. 

Compared to November, oil activities decreased 0.3 percent, while non-oil activities increased 0.4 percent. 

The IPI measures changes in industrial output based on the International Standard Industrial Classification framework and covers mining, manufacturing, utilities and waste management sectors.