RIYADH: A surge in the production of paper and related products meant manufacturing activities in Saudi Arabia saw a month-on-month increase of 0.2 percent in March, according to official data. The 1.2 percent rise in this sub-sector helped balance out drops in other areas, but the Kingdom’s overall Industrial Production Index still posted a marginal slip of 0.2 percent compared to the previous month. According to the General Authority for Statistics, the manufacturing of chemicals and chemical products, as well as the production of basic metals, witnessed declines of 2.6 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively. Additionally, the sub-index for electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply decreased by 3 percent in March compared to the previous month, while water supply, sewage, and waste management activities saw an increase of 2.1 percent. The report, however, revealed that Saudi Arabia’s overall IPI in March experienced a decline of 8.7 percent compared to the same month in 2022. This decrease was primarily attributed to a downturn in mining and quarrying activities. “Given the relative weights of the mining and quarrying activity which reached 61.4 percent, the trend of the industrial production in the mining and quarrying sector dominates the trend in the general IPI,” stated GASTAT in the report. It added: “The sub-index for mining and quarrying activity in March 2024 decreased by 14.2 percent compared to the same month of the previous year, as Saudi Arabia decreased its oil production to 8.9 million barrels per day in March 2024.” Compared to February, mining activities declined by 0.4 percent, the GASTAT report noted. The dip in mining activities was driven by Saudi Arabia’s decision to reduce oil output, aligned with an agreement by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, and its allies, collectively known as OPEC+. In a bid to maintain market stability, Saudi Arabia decreased its oil output by 500,000 barrels per day in April 2023, a measure that has now been extended until December 2024. Meanwhile, the manufacture of paper and paper products recorded an annual increase of 8.2 percent, while the production of beverages surged by 6.5 percent. Earlier this month, another report released by GASTAT revealed that Saudi Arabia’s real gross domestic product increased by 1.3 percent in the first three months of this year compared to the previous quarter. The authority further revealed that this rise in real GDP was driven by an increase in oil and non-oil activities which went up by 2.4 percent and 0.5 percent during the period.