Saudi Arabia said the total value of awarded contracts for full year 2019 surged to hit SR197.1 billion ($52.6 billion), which is the highest since 2015, said the US-Saudi Business Council (USSBC) in its Contract Awards Index for the Fourth Quarter 2019.
The total value of awarded contracts during the fourth quarter hit SR35.3 billion ($9.4 billion), it stated.
Sector-wise, real estate topped the list with SR12.1 billion ($3.2 billion) worth of awarded contracts, while the oil and gas sector edged down to second from last quarter’s top spot as the value of awarded contracts reached SR7.7 billion ($2 billion) followed by the water sector at third position with SR6.3 billion ($1.7 billion) worth of contract awards, stated the report.
The USSBC Contract Awards Index (CAI) is an original report created by the US-Saudi Business Council’s economist, Albara’a Alwazir. It encompasses construction-related contract awards across all sectors within Saudi Arabia.
A CAI reading of 100 points and above indicates an expansion while a sub-100 point reading indicates a possible contraction.
The USSBC CAI reached 210.27 points, increasing its streak to seven consecutive months above 200 points. It is intended to be used as a forward-looking indicator to gauge the health of construction activities, it added.
TradeArabia News Service
23/03/2020
