(Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s economy grew at a pace of 2.21 percent in 2018, recovering from a contraction in the previous year, helped by higher oil prices, government data showed on Thursday.

Oil sector grew 2.85 percent from a contraction in 2017, while non-oil sector grew 2.05 percent, the data showed.

The Saudi economy recovered last year after being hit hard in recent years by low oil prices and state austerity measures introduced to curb a huge budget deficit. In 2017, it shrank 0.74 percent for the first time since the global financial crisis nearly a decade earlier.

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