Share of imports that come from China in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Share of imports that come from China was 27.4% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Share of imports that come from China in Saudi Arabia, 1971–2025
Source: International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 27.4% for share of imports that come from china in 2025. That is the highest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of up 16.3% on the previous year and up 94.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of imports that come from china in Saudi Arabia peaked at 27.4% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1971.
That places Saudi Arabia 35th out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of imports that come from China in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 0.0% | — |
| 1972 | 0.0% | +251.0% |
| 1973 | 0.0% | -42.2% |
| 1974 | 0.1% | +387.4% |
| 1975 | 0.1% | -7.5% |
| 1976 | 0.2% | +79.5% |
| 1977 | 0.3% | +21.4% |
| 1978 | 0.5% | +99.2% |
| 1979 | 0.7% | +20.9% |
| 1980 | 0.9% | +43.1% |
| 1981 | 0.8% | -17.6% |
| 1982 | 0.7% | -14.3% |
| 1983 | 0.7% | +1.8% |
| 1984 | 0.6% | -4.1% |
| 1985 | 1.0% | +50.7% |
| 1986 | 1.3% | +34.6% |
| 1987 | 1.7% | +31.7% |
| 1988 | 2.0% | +13.6% |
| 1989 | 2.1% | +5.2% |
| 1990 | 1.9% | -8.5% |
| 1991 | 2.2% | +17.0% |
| 1992 | 2.2% | -1.5% |
| 1993 | 2.3% | +5.1% |
| 1994 | 2.2% | -3.3% |
| 1995 | 2.9% | +30.0% |
| 1996 | 3.2% | +9.8% |
| 1997 | 3.2% | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 3.2% | +1.2% |
| 1999 | 3.5% | +9.4% |
| 2000 | 4.0% | +13.1% |
| 2001 | 4.6% | +16.7% |
| 2002 | 5.4% | +15.9% |
| 2003 | 6.0% | +12.0% |
| 2004 | 6.7% | +12.0% |
| 2005 | 7.5% | +11.2% |
| 2006 | 8.7% | +16.3% |
| 2007 | 9.8% | +12.8% |
| 2008 | 11.1% | +13.1% |
| 2009 | 11.6% | +4.5% |
| 2010 | 11.9% | +2.9% |
| 2011 | 13.4% | +12.3% |
| 2012 | 13.0% | -3.0% |
| 2013 | 12.8% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 13.7% | +7.4% |
| 2015 | 14.1% | +2.8% |
| 2016 | 14.3% | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 15.4% | +7.7% |
| 2018 | 16.7% | +7.9% |
| 2019 | 19.2% | +15.0% |
| 2020 | 19.7% | +2.6% |
| 2021 | 20.4% | +3.6% |
| 2022 | 21.3% | +4.5% |
| 2023 | 21.2% | -0.6% |
| 2024 | 23.6% | +11.4% |
| 2025 | 27.4% | +16.3% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 27.4% is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.4%, 2.9× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 27.4% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 18.7%, 1.5× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of imports that come from China in Saudi Arabia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | +387.4% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| 1972 | +251.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1978 | +99.2% | 0.3% | 0.5% |
| 1976 | +79.5% | 0.1% | 0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.7% | 9 |
| 1980s | 1.2% | 0.6% | 2.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.7% | 1.9% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.5% | 4.0% | 11.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.5% | 11.9% | 19.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 22.2% | 19.7% | 27.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More economy & growth data for Saudi Arabia
- Real gdp growth, annual growth rate 69.95 % change on previous year (2025)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.26 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.52 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 4.62 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0168 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 580.45 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate -0.3713 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0123 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 423.84 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 4.52 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of imports that come from china in Saudi Arabia?
- Share of imports that come from china in Saudi Arabia was 27.4% in 2025, according to International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of imports that come from china recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 27.4% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of imports that come from china recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1971.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for share of imports that come from china?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 35th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of imports that come from china rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 94.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of imports that come from China. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage of a country's total goods imports, including freight and insurance costs, that come from China.