📈 U.S. Trade Declines with Saudi Arabia and GCC Amid Global Trade Growth

From 2012 to 2024, U.S. trade with the GCC fell by 39%, from $126 billion to $77 billion. In contrast, total U.S. trade with the world expanded by 40%, reducing the GCC’s share of U.S. trade from 3.3% to 1.4%. The sharpest decline was with Saudi Arabia—historically the U.S.’s main GCC trade partner until 2022—where trade dropped by 65%, from $77 billion to $26 billion, lowering its share of U.S. trade from 2.0% to 0.5%. Meanwhile, U.S. trade with UAE rose from $25 billion to $35 billion, reflecting the UAE’s growing role as a regional trade intermediary between the U.S. and countries such as Iran, Iraq, and Russia.

GCC members: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates