Saudi Arabia real GDP growth slowed to 1.54% Y-o-Y in 1Q16 from 1.8% Y-o-Y in 4Q15, the slowest growth since 0.3% in 1Q13. The oil sector expanded 5.1% Y-o-Y as the Kingdom increased its crude production and refined products exports, while the non-oil sector shrank 0.7% Y-o-Y, marking its worst performance in five years. The drop in non-oil sector growth is partially explained by an unusually strong growth in 1Q15 when the King awarded public employees two months' extra salary to mark his accession to the throne. Meanwhile, the government is adopting austerity measures to cope with the oil price slump, which affects growth negatively. (Reuters, Mohamed Abu Basha)