Moody’s Affirms its Credit Rating of Saudi Arabia at ‘Aa3’ with Stable Outlook

The credit rating agency Moody’s has affirmed Saudi Arabia’s credit rating at “Aa3” with a “stable” outlook. The agency said Friday that the affirmation at Aa3 reflects Saudi Arabia’s large and wealthy economy, supported by its vast hydrocarbon endowment, and highly competitive position in global energy markets, alongside improving institutional and policy effectiveness. Progress under Vision 2030 has underpinned solid non-hydrocarbon growth, supported by sustained public investment, structural reforms, and gradually improving fiscal and economic transparency. Moody’s noted that Saudi Arabia’s stable outlook reflects the Kingdom’s resilience against regional geopolitical risks and potential trade disruptions, supported by strong and continued oil exports flexibility through the East-West pipeline and Red Sea terminals. The agency also expects that the Kingdom’s progress on economic diversification is likely to continue and the momentum will be sustained over the coming years. It is supported by significant progress to date in implementing a broad-based reform agenda, including judicial, business and social reforms that have accelerated the development of the services sector and the broader non-oil economy. Moody’s expects non-hydrocarbon private sector GDP growth to return to around 4-5% after the Middle East conflict subsides, among the strongest rates in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), reflecting ongoing structural reforms, sustained public investment and improving private sector participation.