Saudi GDP could surprise on the upside, higher budget deficit seen in 2019: IMF - Reuters

Saudi GDP could surprise on the upside, higher budget deficit seen in 2019: IMF - Reuters:

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that Saudi Arabia’s economic growth in 2019 may be slightly higher than its earlier 1.8 percent forecast as the non-oil sector is expanding faster than the wider economy, a senior official said. 

The budget deficit this year could be 7.9 percent, higher than 2018 on an assumption that oil prices would be lower in 2019 compared to last year, Jihad Azour, director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the IMF, told Reuters.

“We expect non-oil growth to be at 2.6 percent this year and 2.9 percent for 2020,” he said in an interview in Dubai.