Signal · Geopolitical Risk

‎Saudi merchandise imports down 5% in Q2

Argaam - Main News Trade press Published 13th September 2026 Saudi Arabia

What the source reported

Source-reported

‎<img src="https://argaamplus.s3.amazonaws.com/95c08bc9-c9b3-483c-8ffd-669fef0ad7b8.png" > A container ship is docked at King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam <hr> <div data-olk-copy-source="MessageBody" > Saudi Arabia’s merchandise imports retreated by 5% year-on-year (YoY) to almost SAR 224.5 billion in Q2 2026, according to data issued by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). Compared to Q1 2026, merchandise imports were down by nearly SAR 3.6 billion. The most imported goods during the quarter were machinery, electrical equipment, and their parts, representing 29% of total imports, as well as transport equipment (vehicles, aircraft, and ships), accounting for 10%. <table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr > <td colspan="5" > Imports by Category (SAR bln) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Category </td> <td > Q2 2025 </td> <td > Q2 2026 </td> <td > Change (Value) </td> <td > Change (%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Machinery and Mechanical Appliances; Electrical Equipment; Parts Thereof </td> <td > 68.15 </td> <td > 64.46 </td> <td > (3.69) </td> <td > (5%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Vehicles, Aircraft, Vessels, and Associated Transport Equipment </td> <td > 31.61 </td> <td > 22.04 </td> <td > (9.57) </td> <td > (30%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Products of the Chemical or Allied Industries </td> <td > 21.04 </td> <td > 20.79 </td> <td > (0.25) </td> <td > (1%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Base Metals and Articles of Base Metal </td> <td > 21.31 </td> <td > 18.12 </td> <td > (3.19) </td> <td > (15%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Precious Stones or Metals and Their Articles, Jewelry </td> <td > 9.80 </td> <td > 17.88 </td> <td > +8.08 </td> <td > 82% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Mineral products </td> <td > 12.82 </td> <td > 17.84 </td> <td > +5.02 </td> <td > 39% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Vegetable Products </td> <td > 11.41 </td> <td > 10.35 </td> <td > (1.06) </td> <td > (9%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Food Products, Beverages, and Tobacco </td> <td > 9.98 </td> <td > 9.49 </td> <td > (0.49) </td> <td > (5%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Plastics and Articles Thereof; Rubber and Articles Thereof </td> <td > 7.82 </td> <td > 7.04 </td> <td > (0.78) </td> <td > (10%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Animal Products </td> <td > 7.48 </td> <td > 7.00 </td> <td > (0.48) </td> <td > (6%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Others </td> <td > 34.23 </td> <td > 29.45 </td> <td > (4.78) </td> <td > (14%) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Total </td> <td > 235.75 </td> <td > 224.46 </td> <td > (12.29) </td> <td > (5%) </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <div></div> China ranked as the top exporter to Saudi Arabia, with imports valued at SAR 57.1 billion, accounting for more than 25% of total imports in Q2 2026. The US and the UAE came in second and third, at 9% and 7%, respectively. <table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr > <td colspan="3" > Top 10 Import Partners in Q2 2026 (SAR bln) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Country </td> <td > Value </td> <td > % to Total </td> </tr> <tr > <td > China </td> <td > 57.1 </td> <td > 25.4% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > US </td> <td > 19.3 </td> <td > 8.6% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > UAE </td> <td > 14.5 </td> <td > 6.5% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Egypt </td> <td > 12.6 </td> <td > 5.6% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Switzerland </td> <td > 11.6 </td> <td > 5.2% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > India </td> <td > 9.7 </td> <td > 4.3% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Germany </td> <td > 9.6 </td> <td > 4.3% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Italy </td> <td > 7.1 </td> <td > 3.2% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > France </td> <td > 6.2 </td> <td > 2.8% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Japan </td> <td > 6.1 </td> <td > 2.7% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Other Countries </td> <td > 70.7 </td> <td > 31.5% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Total </td> <td > 224.5 </td> <td > 100.0% </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <div ></div> </div>

Publication: Argaam - Main News · Trade Publication
Published: 13th September 2026
Original report: argaam.com

ProcIntel stores what the source published in its feed — a headline, a summary and a link. It does not store or reproduce the full article.

What ProcIntel recorded

ProcIntel-derived

Category: Geopolitical Risk
Geography: Saudi Arabia
Organisations: None identified
Collected: 13th September 2026 · 14:56

Initial assessment ProcIntel's automatic, provisional read of this individual Signal -- Initial Significance and Initial Confidence, computed deterministically before any Event extraction or human review.

A provisional, automatically computed reading of this individual Signal, before Event extraction or human review. Not a final rating.

Significance 2 · Moderate

Confidence 2 · Low

Initial Significance Moderate (34.0/100). Strongest contributor: Procurement Impact (12.0/30 points). Limiting factor: Likely Event Severity (3.0/30 points). Initial Confidence Low (39.0/100, data sufficiency: Partial). Strongest contributor: Source Authority (20.0/40 points). Limiting factor: Extraction Quality (3.0/15 points).

Strongest contributor: Procurement Impact
Limiting factor: Likely Event Severity

Possibly the same underlying story as Saudi Arabia shuts down pipeline as Houthis seize island, opening new front in Iran war — flagged automatically, never merged automatically.

What the source reported

What ProcIntel recorded

Initial assessment ⓘMore about Initial Signal AssessmentProcIntel's automatic, provisional read of this individual Signal -- Initial Significance and Initial Confidence, computed deterministically before any Event extraction or human review.

Initial assessment ProcIntel's automatic, provisional read of this individual Signal -- Initial Significance and Initial Confidence, computed deterministically before any Event extraction or human review.