This report details Cooper Fitch findings on salary trends within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since the release of our annual Salary Guide in January, where we predicted the rise of salaries by 4% across the country in 2019. We take a look at current salary growth or decline according to data collated mid-year 2019, with the trends impacting the numbers.

1. KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
SALARY TRENDS
REPORT
KSA
2019
MID-YEAR

2. KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
©Cooper Fitch 2019
1
2019 KSA SALARY TRENDS
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Percentage of salary changes by sector
(mid-year review)
cooperfitch.ae
In recent reports, Saudi Central Bank expects the
Saudi economic growth by year-end 2019 would be at
least 2%. The Kingdom recorded a budget surplus of
27.8 billion riyals in the January-March period, the first
of its kind since oil prices plunged in 2014.
Saudi aim to improve the country's labour
productivity, lowering the rate of unemployment by
almost 5%. Being a crucial goal within creating a
thriving economy, hiring Saudi national talent remains
a fundamental focus for businesses both in the public
and private sectors.
Also, still on-trend across the growing economy is the
demand for international talent, businesses aim to
adopt global best practices to their locally based
operations, with Arabic language skill being an
advantage for job seekers.
Cooper Fitch predicted at the beginning of 2019 to see
a 4% salary increase across Saudi. Six months
onwards, we can report a salary rise of 5% in public
sector, and a rise of 2% on average within the private
sector whilst employment opportunities on the
increase by 7-8% compared to 2018.
This report details Cooper Fitch findings on salary
trends within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since the
release of our annual Salary Guide in January, where
we predicted the rise of salaries by 4% across the
country in 2019. We take a look at current salary
growth or decline according to data collated mid-year
2019, with the trends impacting the numbers.
With the drive of Vision 2030, the country is making
significant effort to diversify the economy with
infrastructure, healthcare, tourism, entertainment and
transportation developments. The IMF expects non-oil
growth to be at 2.6 per cent this year and 2.9 per cent
for 2020.
The USSABC revealed that the value of contract
awards in Saudi Arabia grew by 113% in Q1 2019
compared to 2018 (SAR48.9bn). The total amount of
contracts covers mega projects in various sectors, with
oil and gas, water and transportation projects making
up 67% of the total cost.
Saudi stock market joined the MSCI Emerging Market
Index in June 2018. The country has seen the growth
of Foreign Direct Investment by 44% in the first
quarter of 2019 versus the same period in 2018. This
could lead to passive and active inflows of between
US$30 billion and US$45 billion, which will
significantly support the continuous growth and
diversification of the market.
2%
5%
PUBLIC
SECTOR
PRIVATE
SECTOR
Graph represents
changes in salaries by
category in % across
Saudi Arabia.

3. KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
©Cooper Fitch 2019
2
2019 KSA SALARY TRENDS
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Percentage of salary changes by sector
(mid-year review)
TREFOR MURPHY
FOUNDER&CEO
tmurphy@cooperfitch.ae
+971 (0) 4 352 2506
ABOUT COOPER FITCH
Cooper Fitch provide professional services to organisations
across the GCC on all matters talent-related. Driving business
forward with top-tier talent, market & data insights & consulting
services to better their employee attraction & retention, shaping
the future of their tomorrow.
We provide comprehensive compensation and benefits analysis
designed to advance your competitive talent advantage, contact
me for any specific requests or questions on this report.
Recruitment
Executive Search
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5% 4% 4%
-5%
2% 3% 2% 2% 2% 4% 6% 3%
STRATEGYMANUFACTURING&SUPPLYCHAIN
SALES&
MARKETING
HUMANRESOURCES
INSURANCE
DIGITAL
LEGAL
PUBLICSECTOR
INVESTMENT
MANAGEMENT
SENIORFINANCE
COMPLIANCE
ADVISORY
Graph represents changes in
salaries by category in % across
Saudi Arabia. Shown in scale
against the prediction made in
2018 expecting to see an increase
of 4% country-wide. (Cooper Fitch
Salary Guide 2019 KSA)
0%
2%
4%
3%
BANKING

4. 5%One of the most significant growth areas for
both international SME's & locally-based talent.PUBLIC SECTOR
2019 KSA SALARY TRENDS
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Percentage of salary changes by sector
(mid-year review)
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
©Cooper Fitch 2019
3
3%
Growth in salaries has slowed in comparison to
2018. However, there is still pressure on banks
to retain talent from the public sector, despite
many planned mergers.
BANKING
4%Compliance and governance professionals in
the private sector will be recruited more into
the public sector in 2019.
4%Increased competition for local talent in certain
asset classes, especially real estate and
infrastructure.
INVESTMENT
MANAGEMENT
COMPLIANCE
-5%Increase demand for mid-level professionals,
but a surplus of senior finance candidates,
salaries have softened slightly.
SENIOR
FINANCE
2%Demand for bilingual professionals seem to be
a significant trend, growth in cyber, M & A and
risk consulting.
ADVISORY
3%The continued trend for Saudi based talent in
consulting firms and acute hiring demand in
new public sector entities.
0%
VAT professional hiring stabilised early 2019.
We see some growth in organisations building
internal teams; this will continue for the
foreseeable future.
TAX
STRATEGY
cooperfitch.ae

5. 2%Cooper Fitch predicts that this increase in
salaries will continue as continued investment
in a variety of manufacturing sectors.
MANUFACTURING
& SUPPLY CHAIN
2019 KSA SALARY TRENDS
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Percentage of salary changes by sector
(mid-year review)
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
©Cooper Fitch 2019
4
2%
Salaries in the private sector remain below
expectations but this has been balanced by a
higher number of opportunities within the
public sector.
SALES
& MARKETING
0%
We see significant investment in technology
within both the public and private sectors, a
strong focus in particular within cybersecurity
and cloud-based solutions.
2%Saudi Arabia has revealed ambitious plans to
create more than 561,000 private-sector jobs by
2023.
DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGY
4%
Expansion plans are impacting the kind of
talent that organisations seek to retain and
attract, which has contributed to salaries
consistently rising.
HUMAN
RESOURCES
6%The Saudi market is in the growth stage of its
economic life-cycle; the coming years are
looking increasingly promising.
INSURANCE
3%We see strong demand for Saudi national talent
and bilingual corporate legal professionals,
which continues to add pressure on salaries.
LEGAL
cooperfitch.ae

6. The Cooper Fitch Salary Trends Report for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia represents the
change in salaries by percentage across the region. The comparable data refers to the
prediction Cooper Fitch made year-end 2018 being 4% salary increment across Saudi
Arabia and all sectors.
Our data is based on several sources; successful assignments our firm have competed in
2019, undergoing appointments, daily interaction with hiring managers and mid to senior-
level executives across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Our unique position enables Cooper
Fitch to track the latest insights and trends in salary ranges.
Bonuses and other forms of remuneration, such as pension scheme and long-term
incentives, are not taken into account, which varies significantly.
SOURCES
International Monetary Fund (imf.org)
U.S.-Saudi Arabian Business Council (us-sabc.org)
Trading Economics (tradingeconomics.com)
MSCI Emerging Markets Index (msci.com)
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2019 KSA SALARY TRENDS
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Percentage of salary changes by sector
(mid-year review)
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
©Cooper Fitch 2019
5 cooperfitch.ae