hamad al - sayari : recent economic and financial developments in saudi arabia speech by his excellency hamad al - sayari, governor of the saudi arabian monetary agency, to the custodian of the two holy mosques on the occasion of presenting the 44th annual report of the saudi arabian monetary agency, riyadh, 11 october 2008. * * * it is a great pleasure for me to present to you the 44th annual report of the saudi arabian monetary agency which reviews the latest economic and financial developments in the kingdom. custodian of the two holy mosques, during 2007, the national economy continued its strong growth for the fifth consecutive year, with real gdp increasing by 3. 4 percent. the roles of the private and the government sectors in the development process were enhanced, recording growth rates of 5. 8 percent and 2. 7 percent respectively. the state budget witnessed remarkable improvement in 2007, resulting in a surplus for the fifth consecutive year amounting to 12. 3 percent of gdp. the balance of payments registered a surplus for the ninth consecutive year which stood at 24. 9 percent of gdp. the monetary and banking sector also contributed effectively to the economy by providing adequate liquidity to finance growing and accelerated activities. financial institutions played a significant role in the growth of the economy by providing various modern financial services. custodian of the two holy mosques, with the establishment of the supreme economic council ( sec ) under your wise leadership, the saudi economy has witnessed a dramatic transformation. the council has taken a broad range of decisions and measures aimed at restructuring and regulating the economy and streamlining regulations and legislation which would help to upgrade the level of efficiency and competitiveness of the economy and support optimum operation of production factors. the objective has been to provide an advanced regulatory and administrative framework and an environment attractive to domestic and foreign investments. since the establishment of the council, more than 60 major restructuring reform decisions have been taken in addition to more than 130 decisions for regulatory, procedural and administrative development. fortunately, these developments have been accompanied by remarkable improvement in the state budget and in the world oil markets. consequently, economic performance has obviously improved in recent years. an indicator of this improvement is the private sector ’ s average annual real growth rate of 5. 0 percent and the rise in other non - oil exports by an average annual rate of 23. 1 percent to 7. 3 percent of gdp at the end of 2007. as a result of these reforms, the kingdom has gained a high sovereign rating

alongside our partners in the public sector, the private sector, central banks and international organizations, to design the future financial system in a way that will enlist technologies in the service of the entire public. the world of payments, for a long time already, is not just a “ plumbing ” system, but an integral part of the financial world. i promise that over the course of the day we will see, learn, and hear about developments in the worlds of payments, that have changed, are changing, and will change the payment experience of all of us, and will make it more convenient, effective, secure, and accessible. thank you for attending this conference, and i wish all of us a productive and beneficial conference.