Saudi Arabia’s Reserve Assets Rise 8.1 Percent to About 495 Billion Dollars in June, Reversing May’s Dip

Saudi Arabia’s official reserve assets rose to 1.85 trillion riyals, about 494.6 billion dollars at the 3.75 peg, our conversion, at the end of June, up 8.06 percent from a year earlier and 23.44 billion riyals, or 1.28 percent, above May’s level, according to the Saudi Central Bank’s monthly reserve assets data.

Foreign currency reserves, the largest component, stood at 1.76 trillion riyals, up 8.7 percent year on year from 1.62 trillion riyals in June 2025. Special drawing rights holdings were 78.64 billion riyals, down 3.3 percent from a year earlier, the reserve position at the International Monetary Fund was 13.22 billion riyals, and monetary gold was unchanged at 1.62 billion riyals, a book value that has not changed since 2008.

The June increase reverses May’s dip, when total reserves had slipped about 1 percent on the month to 1.83 trillion riyals, in a period in which elevated oil prices have supported the kingdom’s external accounts even as export volumes were disrupted.

Why it matters: Reserve buffers are the first line of defence for a pegged currency in a supply shock, and Saudi Arabia’s grew through the most disruptive quarter the Gulf has faced in years. An 8 percent annual gain alongside record Egyptian reserves and stable Qatari buffers, both covered on this site, paints a region whose external positions are absorbing the war rather than being drained by it, in line with S&P’s assessment of stable Gulf sovereign profiles.

Outlook: July’s data will show whether the June build extended as Brent held above 75 dollars a barrel and Gulf export volumes recovered through the partial reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The IMF’s July outlook update projects Saudi growth of 1.7 percent this year before a strong 2027 rebound, a path in which reserves would keep accumulating.

Table – SAMA reserve assets, end-June 2026:

Sources: Saudi Central Bank; Arab News.

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