Saudi Customs: Revenues rise 14% to $4.02bn

Revenues of Saudi Customs totalled SR15.1bn ($4.02bn) last year, an increase of more than 14 percent compared to the previous year, according to new figures published on Tuesday. An annual report issued by Saudi Customs, cited by state news agency SPA, also revealed that that more than 16,400 smuggling cases were seized last year. The report also said that 15.7 million fake or counterfeit items were seized in 2010, an increase of 149 percent compared to 2009. Saudi Customs also said in its report that the number of passengers who arrived in the kingdom last year exceeded 32 million while departures totalled 31.5 million passengers. It said that 16.7 million cars and trucks arrived and departed from Saudi Arabia last year, up 2.2 percent compared to 2009. Last month, Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest importer of barley, reported a 23 percent drop in food imports in the first half of this year after stockpiling grain. Food shipments to the Arab world’s largest economy, which relies on imports to feed its population of 27 million, fell to 7.8 million tonnes from January through June from 10 million tonnes in the same period last year, the Saudi Port Authority said on its website. From / Arabian Business News