Riyadh — Recent data show that Saudi Arabia’s non-oil economy is growing with a positive outlook, according to Bloomberg.

Bank lending to private businesses grew last quarter at the fastest pace since 2016 and a gauge of economic activity rose the most in over a year. Consumer spending also improved, the report said.

Khatija Haque, head of Middle East and North Africa Research at Emirates NBD, Dubai biggest bank expects non-oil gross domestic product to expand 2.7 percent this year, the fastest pace in four years.

The Emirates NBD Purchasing Managers’ Index, a measure of business activity in the non-oil private sector, saw the fastest expansion since the last three months of 2017.

Despite a drop in ATM withdrawals in March, Saudi residents flashed their plastic cards enough to push transactions up almost 20 percent on an annual basis, pointing to improvement in consumer spending. — SG