S&P Global put the average cost of building a data centre in Saudi Arabia at $13 million per megawatt as of August, the same as North America, against $12 million in Europe and $11 million in the UAE. Consultancy Currie & Brown says data centre build costs in the Middle East could rise 10% this year as shipping disruption raises freight and insurance costs.
Build costs are now as high as those in the most expensive markets. If you’re a hyperscaler sales lead working with Saudi clients, focus your pitch on latency and data residency instead of cost.
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13.99 million insured workers
Saudi Arabia's social insurance scheme covered 13.99 million public and private sector employees at the end of Q2 2026, according to GOSI data. Saudis numbered 3.17 million, or 23%, and expatriates about 10.82 million, or 77%. The private sector accounted for 13.35 million, or 95%, and Riyadh for about 7.24 million. In the quarter, 245,600 people suspended their subscription, 103,400 of them Saudis.
Saudis make up 23% of insured workers, but they account for 103,400 out of 245,600 suspensions. Because of this, a workforce-programme manager should monitor employee exits each quarter just as carefully as new hires.
Provisions ate the margin
Saudi banks' Q3 2026 profit grew 4.8% to about SAR 24.75 billion, the slowest growth since Q4 2020, even though net financing and investment income rose 11.4% and net financing income rose 9.1% to SAR 29.3 billion. Provisions rose 50% to nearly SAR 3 billion, lifting the cost of risk from about 26 to 36 basis points. Al Rajhi, Riyad Bank and BSF together took about 95% of the increase in net profit.
Net financing income increased by 9.1%, but profit was up just 4.8%, marking the slowest growth since Q4 2020. Equity analysts covering Saudi banks should focus their Q4 forecasts more on provisions than on lending growth.
The surplus widened sharply
Saudi Arabia's trade balance recorded a surplus of SR61.52 billion in the second quarter of 2026, an annual growth rate of 62%. Total merchandise exports rose 4% year on year to approximately SR285.98 billion while merchandise imports declined 5% to SR224.46 billion, according to GASTAT data.
Trade finance teams at Saudi banks should focus less on the 62% surplus growth and pay more attention to the 5% drop in imports, since their fees come from the part of the business that has decreased.
