Philippines–Saudi Arabia relations


The Philippines–Saudi Arabia relations refers to the bilateral relations of the Philippines and Saudi Arabia. Formal diplomatic relations between the two countries were established on October 24, 1969.

Trade relations

In 2012, Saudi Arabia was the 10th largest trading partner of the Philippines, 31st and 8th largest market in the export and import market respectively. Saudi Arabia was also the Philippines' largest trading partner and import supplier, and second largest export market in the Middle East. According to the Saudi government, trade between Saudi Arabia and the Philippines amounted to $3.6 billion in 2011, a bigger figure from compared to the previous year's trade figure amounting to $2.7 billion.

Labor relations

As of June 2013, there are about 674,000 Filipinos working in Saudi Arabia according to the Saudi Ministry of Interior. A landmark agreement on Filipino household service workers were signed between Saudi Arabia and the Philippines. The agreement was the first for Saudi Arabia with a labor-supplying country.
In 2012, about 150,000 Filipino female nurses are working in Saudi Arabia. This accounts for 25 percent of the total number of Overseas Filipino Workers in the Kingdom.