S&P says Gulf countries need to raise $300 billion by 2021 | Reuters

S&P says Gulf countries need to raise $300 billion by 2021 | Reuters:

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will need to raise about $300 billion between 2018 and 2021, with Saudi Arabia having the largest financing requirements, according to rating agency S&P.

Gulf states have increasingly relied on external financing after a slump in oil prices created large budget deficits and prompted the introduction of sweeping economic reforms over the past few years.

Saudi Arabia has become the region’s most prominent issuer of international debt, having borrowed $52 billion through a combination of conventional and Islamic international bonds since its debut in the international markets in late 2016.