The Impact of Oil Export, R&D, Inflation and FDI on GDP in Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT :The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the largest independent nation in Western Asia and isrecognized as the largest economy in the Middle East and the Arab world, ranking among the top twentyeconomies globally. This systematic review aims to fill a gap in the literature, elucidating the impact of oilexport, R&D, inflation, and FDI as a key determinant of economic growth, providing a comprehensive analysisof these components on the Gross domestic product (GDP) of Saudi Arabia. Economic Growth evaluation wastypically assessed through GDP, which reflects a country‟s market benefits derived from the produced goodsand services over a certain period. The findings revealed a heavy reliance of kingdom‟s economic growth on itsoil revenue with more than 45% of its GDP being from oil export. This has made its economic growthvulnerable to the fluctuation in oil prices which is considered a leading factor for inflation pressure. However,the non-oil sector maintained a sustainable contribution to the overall GDP, particularly through Foreign DirectInvestment (FDI) captivation and fostering skilled human capital through Research and development (R&D)promotion which led to a relative increase in the total GDP since the launch of 2030 Saudi Arabia vision. Insummary, despite the substantial governmental initiatives aimed at economic diversification, the oil sectorremains the primary contributor to Saudi Arabia’s overall GDP underscoring the need for high-quality policiesto ensure sustainable economic growth.