RIYADH: Riyadh bagged 18,800 commercial registers in the first quarter of 2023, making it the city with the highest number of entrepreneurs emerging in the business landscape.
Issued by the Saudi Ministry of Commerce, a commercial register is a legal document confirming a business’s registration in Saudi Arabia.
According to a statement from the ministry, it issued 65,400 commercial registers across the Kingdom between January and March this year.
Makkah came in second with 14,400 registers, followed by the Eastern Province with 8,900, Asir with 4,094, and Madinah with 3,082.
The commercial registers issued to Riyadh, Makkah and the Eastern Province accounted for an estimated 77 percent of the total registrations.
From a sectorial standpoint, the wholesale and retail industry leads others with 21,200 registers, representing 32.4 percent of all the commercial registers issued during the quarter.
The construction sector followed with 10,000 registers, representing 15.3 percent of the total registers.
Meanwhile, 8,000 registers were issued for the accommodation and catering services sector, representing 12.2 percent of the total pie.
Other sectors that received registers include manufacturing, administrative and support services, transportation and storage and real estate.
In 2022, the ministry issued 314,500 commercial registers for firms and establishments, reflecting a 6 percent surge year-on-year.
During the same year, the ministry protected up to 170 economic activities at risk of bankruptcy.
Earlier this month, the ministry earmarked 10 priority projects in the trade and investment sector this year amid efforts to review and upgrade regulations and legislation in order, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
This move will help the Kingdom achieve the Saudi Vision 2030 objective of providing an attractive investment environment for local and international investors and enhancing the business sector’s regional and global competitiveness.
According to the news agency, the reforms would touch upon consumer protection, commercial registration, trade names, commercial transactions, mediation and the controls for establishing government firms.
The reforms will also encompass the family business charter, the corporate governance regulations, the commercial registration system implementing rules, and the trade names system implementing regulations.
