The unemployment rate among Saudi Arabian nationals surged to 9.9% in the third quarter, from 9.7% in the second quarter, according to official data released Thursday.
The overall unemployment rate in the kingdom during the period for both Saudi nationals and non-Saudis was 5.8%, unchanged from the previous quarter but down 0.8 percentage points from the year-ago period, showed a report released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).
The labor force participation rate of Saudi nationals went up to 52.5%, a 0.7 percentage point increase from the previous period, while the employment-to-population ratio of Saudis increased by 0.5 percentage point to 47.3%.
Key labor market indicators for Saudis improved compared to a year-ago period, with growth seen in both the participation rate, up 2.7 percentage points and the employment-to-population ratio, up 3.1 percentage points, while the unemployment rate was down 1.4 percentage points.
During the third quarter, the jobless rate among Saudi females rose to 20.5%, up 1.2 percentage points from the previous quarter but fell 1.4 percentage points compared to the year-ago period, the GASTAT report added.
The increase in the unemployment rate was accompanied by an expansion of labor force participation that outpaced growth in employment. The participation rate saw a 1.4 percentage point increase to 37%, while the employment-to-population ratio rose by 0.7 percentage point, reaching 29.4%. The jobless rate among Saudi males fell to 4.3%, a 0.4 percentage point drop from the previous quarter and down 1.6 percentage points from the year-ago period.
GASTAT indicated there was an expansion of labor force participation in the third quarter among Saudi female youths, aged between 15 and 24 years, together with employment growth, which led to a reduction in the unemployment rate.
The participation rate edged up 1.4 percentage points to 20.2%, the ratio for the employment-to-population rose 1.5 percentage points to 14.6%, and the unemployment rate fell to 27.9%.
The unemployment rate among Saudi male youths declined, accompanied by a contraction in labor market participation and employment losses. The participation rate fell to 37.6% during the period, with the employment-to-population ratio dropping to 33.5% and the unemployment rate falling to 10.9%.
