Lower middle income vs Saudi Arabia: Foreign direct investment, net outflows
Foreign direct investment, net outflows over time
- Lower middle income
- Saudi Arabia
How they compare
Saudi Arabia currently reports 2.1% against 0.6% in Lower middle income, a difference of 1.5%.
That makes Saudi Arabia's figure about 3.3 times Lower middle income's.
The two have swapped places 15 times across 50 shared years of data; in 1976 it was Lower middle income ahead.
Lower middle income ranks 28th and Saudi Arabia ranks 30th of 47 groups.
Across the 6 decades both report, Lower middle income averaged higher in 3 and Saudi Arabia in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Lower middle income | Saudi Arabia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Lower middle income |
| 1980s | 0.0% | 0.3% | 0.3% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1990s | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% | Lower middle income |
| 2000s | 0.5% | 0.3% | 0.2% | Lower middle income |
| 2010s | 0.4% | 1.0% | 0.6% | Saudi Arabia |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 1.8% | 1.4% | Saudi Arabia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher foreign direct investment, net outflows, Lower middle income or Saudi Arabia?
- Saudi Arabia, at 2.1% against 0.6% in Lower middle income as of 2025.
- What is the difference in foreign direct investment, net outflows between Lower middle income and Saudi Arabia?
- 1.5%, with Saudi Arabia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Lower middle income and Saudi Arabia?
- 50 years are reported by both, from 1976 to 2025.
- How do Lower middle income and Saudi Arabia rank globally for foreign direct investment, net outflows?
- Lower middle income ranks 28th and Saudi Arabia ranks 30th of 47 groups.
- Where does this data come from?
- Balance of Payments database, International Monetary Fund (IMF), note: International Monetary Fund, Balance of Payments database, supplemented by data from the United Nations Conference on Trade and D, published as Foreign direct investment, net outflows (% of GDP). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Foreign direct investment refers to direct investment equity flows in an economy. It is the sum of equity capital, reinvestment of earnings, and other capital. Direct investment is a category of cross-border investment associated with a resident in one economy having control or a significant degree of influence on the management of an enterprise that is resident in another economy. Ownership of 10 percent or more of the ordinary shares of voting stock is the criterion for determining the existence of a direct investment relationship. This series shows net outflows of investment from the reporting economy to the rest of the world, and is divided by GDP.