The kingdom’s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 1% in Q2 2017. Following a 0.5% fall in Q1 17, this means the economy is now in recession. There was a 2.4% decline in Q2 oil sector GDP as a result of production cuts, while non-oil GDP grew by 0.8%. Meanwhile, Riyadh is continuing to tap investors to bridge its budget shortfall, issuing $12.5bn of debt in late September, split into five-, ten- and 30-year tranches.
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