Summary: Defence spending in the Middle East has continued to remain strong, reaching some of the highest levels in the past 20 years.
Economic research specialist CEIC (a Euromoney Institutional Investor company) has released a study showing that defence spending in the Middle East remained strong during 2013, the most recent year for which figures are available.
According to the study, several Middle Eastern countries have maintained or increased their defence spending in the face of changing worldwide threats.
Oman’s military expenditure declined by 3.3% in 2013, to stand at $7.5bn, after a significant surge in 2012 to $7.8bn, the highest defence budget allocation in the country for the past two decades.
With government revenues rising over recent years, it has become possible for Oman to step up its defence expenditure. It is fast emerging as an attractive market for military suppliers.
In addition, defence spending in Saudi Arabia grew by more than 18% in 2013 to over $67bn. Military expenditure in Israel continued to grow in 2013 at a rate of 5.18% to reach $16.3bn, decelerating only marginally from a 5.57% increase in 2012. Figures also show that defence spending in Jordan grew by close to 8.5%, to $2.5bn.
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