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Operating revenues across businesses in the Kingdom hit SAR 5.3 tn in 2023, according to a General Authority for Statistics (Gastat) report (pdf). Manufacturing accounted for the lion’s share of operating revenues during the period, coming in at 30% of the total. Operating revenues for mining and quarrying activities stood at 21.8% of the total, while wholesale, retail and auto repairs contributed 16% to the total. Construction and financial and ins. activities followed at 8.1% and 4.7%.
Gotta spend money to make money: Operating expenditures for Saudi businesses during the period totaled SAR 2.2 tn, with manufacturing representing 41.5% of the total. The wholesale, retail and auto repair sector accounted for 22.3% of operating expenditures, while construction, and information and communications stood for 7.6% and 5.1%.
Wages and salaries across businesses stood at SAR 461.1 bn last year, accounting for 84.6% of total employee compensation. Benefits and allowances represented the remaining 15.4% balance at some SAR 83.6 bn.
Saudi businesses’ gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) amounted to SAR 867.8 bn last year as businesses snapped up fixed assets worth SAR 1.5 tn while offloading fixed assets worth SAR 646.2 bn. Wholesale and retail activities and manufacturing had almost equal contributions to the sector’s GFCF at 22.6% and 22.4%. Mining and quarrying followed at 14.9%, while construction came in at 12.2%.
SOUND SMART- GFCF refers to the total value of an economy’s investment in fixed assets during a period, including machinery and equipment, buildings, and infrastructure. The measure is calculated by subtracting sales of fixed assets from total purchases of fixed assets and serves to gauge how much an economy invests in building out future productivity.
Meanwhile, Saudi micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) rang up SAR 1.6 tn in operating revenues last year, according to a separate Gastat report (pdf). Total operating expenditures for the category stood at SAR 721.6 bn and total employee compensation was at SAR 228 bn.
Medium-sized companies (50-249 employees) gained SAR 747.7 bn in operating revenues during the period while also incurring SAR 330.2 bn in operating expenditure. Operating revenues for small enterprises (6-50 employees) came in at SAR 415.5 bn, with the category also running up SAR 181.4 bn in expenditures. Meanwhile, micro enterprises generated SAR 445.5 bn in operating revenues, with operating expenditures reaching SAR 209.9 bn.
