Riyadh - The overall number of employees (Saudi nationals and expatriates) working in the private sector dropped by 5.8% end of last year to stand at 10.2 million, compared with the 2016 figures.
According to updated statistics released by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), Saudi nationals make up 18.6% of the overall private sector workforce.
The number of Saudi males working in the private sector increased by 2.5% by the end of last year to reach 1.3 million, compared with 2016, while female Saudis increased by 10.6% during the same period to reach 1 million.
According to the SAMA statistics, Non-Saudi males working in the private sector dropped by 8.3% last year to 8.3 million, while non-Saudi females increased by 5.5% to reach 200,000.
The overall rate of unemployment to 6% last year up from 5.6% in 2016 – 7.4% among Saudi males and 33.1% among Saudi females.