Signal · Geopolitical Risk

‎Saudi merchandise imports fall to SAR 70B in July

Argaam - Main News Trade press Published 29th September 2026 Saudi Arabia

What the source reported

Source-reported

‎<img src="https://argaamplus.s3.amazonaws.com/1f9e2cfb-bfad-4c03-a4a4-b18c704fd14a.png" > Jeddah Islamic Port <hr> Saudi Arabia’s merchandise imports declined by 15% year-on-year (YoY) to nearly SAR 70 billion in July 2026. Compared to June, merchandise imports fell 2%, or nearly SAR 1.44 billion, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT). Machinery, mechanical appliances, electrical equipment and their parts topped imports in July, representing 26% or SAR 18 billion of the Kingdom's total imports. Vehicles, aircraft, vessels, and associated transport equipment followed, making up about 10%. The table below shows details of Saudi imports in July by segment: <table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr > <td colspan="3" > Imports by Category (SAR bln) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Category </td> <td > Value </td> <td > % of Total </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Machinery and Mechanical Appliances; Electrical Equipment; Parts Thereof </td> <td > 18.03 </td> <td > 26% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Vehicles, Aircraft, Vessels, and Associated Transport Equipment </td> <td > 7.11 </td> <td > 10% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Base Metals and Articles of Base Metal </td> <td > 6.59 </td> <td > 9% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Products of the Chemical or Allied Industries </td> <td > 6.41 </td> <td > 9% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Precious Stones or Metals and Their Articles, Jewelry </td> <td > 6.28 </td> <td > 9% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Mineral products </td> <td > 3.91 </td> <td > 6% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Vegetable Products </td> <td > 3.51 </td> <td > 5% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Food Products, Beverages, and Tobacco </td> <td > 3.12 </td> <td > 4% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Plastics and Articles Thereof; Rubber and Articles Thereof </td> <td > 2.64 </td> <td > 4% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Optical Instruments and Apparatus, and others </td> <td > 2.43 </td> <td > 3% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Animal Products </td> <td > 2.21 </td> <td > 3% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Textile Materials and Products </td> <td > 1.62 </td> <td > 2% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Art Collections and Antiquities </td> <td > 1.52 </td> <td > 2% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Miscellaneous Products </td> <td > 1.22 </td> <td > 2% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Others </td> <td > 3.42 </td> <td > 5% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Total </td> <td > 70.02 </td> <td > 100% </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <div ></div> China ranked as the top exporter to Saudi Arabia, with imports valued at SAR 15.9 billion, accounting for 23% of total imports in July. The US and Switzerland came in second and third with SAR 5.9 billion and SAR 4.8 billion, respectively The top 10 exporters to Saudi Arabia accounted for almost 65%, or SAR 45.3 billion, of total imports in the same month, as shown below: <table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr > <td colspan="3" > Top 10 Import Partners in July (SAR bln) </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Country </td> <td > Value </td> <td > % of Total </td> </tr> <tr > <td > China </td> <td > 15.91 </td> <td > 22.7% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > US </td> <td > 5.88 </td> <td > 8.4% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Switzerland </td> <td > 4.80 </td> <td > 6.9% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Germany </td> <td > 3.27 </td> <td > 4.7% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > UAE </td> <td > 3.14 </td> <td > 4.5% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Egypt </td> <td > 2.73 </td> <td > 3.9% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > India </td> <td > 2.68 </td> <td > 3.8% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Italy </td> <td > 2.52 </td> <td > 3.6% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > France </td> <td > 2.48 </td> <td > 3.5% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Japan </td> <td > 1.87 </td> <td > 2.7% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Others </td> <td > 24.75 </td> <td > 35.3% </td> </tr> <tr > <td > Total </td> <td > 70.02 </td> <td > 100.0% </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Publication: Argaam - Main News · Trade Publication
Published: 29th 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: 29th September 2026 · 14:25

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 (31.5/100, data sufficiency: Partial). Strongest contributor: Source Authority (20.0/40 points). Limiting factor: Corroboration (2.5/25 points).

Strongest contributor: Procurement Impact
Limiting factor: Likely Event Severity

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.