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- Kingdom also recorded a surplus in the travel account estimated at about SR41.6 billion
RIYADH: The Saudi Ministry of Tourism said the Kingdom achieved an 8.2 percent growth in spending by foreign visitors during the first half of 2024, compared with the first half of 2023.
The total spend amounted to about SR92.6 billion ($24.5 billion). The Kingdom also recorded a surplus in the travel account estimated at about SR41.6 billion, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The increase in spending by visitors to the Kingdom is part of significant developments in the tourism sector. The Kingdom topped the list of G20 countries in terms of growth in the number of international visitors and growth in international tourism revenues during the first seven months of 2024, compared with the same period in 2019, according to the UN World Tourism Organization.
The issued data confirms the effectiveness of the efforts made by the tourism system to achieve global leadership for the sector by applying best practices in tourism development, improving tourism services and products, and continuous cooperation with all government entities to support the development of the tourism sector in the Kingdom.
This achievement reflects the scale of efforts made by the Ministry of Tourism and other entities in the Saudi tourism system to enhance the sector and contribute to the growth of the national economy, as part of the National Tourism Strategy.