Low-income Saudis get $306mn for Ramadan

FAMILY FUNDS: Low income families in Saudi Arabia are to share $306 million during Ramadan. (Getty Images)

Saudi Arabia is to pay low-income Saudis an extra 1.15 billion riyals ($306 million) in aid during the fasting month of Ramadan, state media said on Sunday, as the country witnesses record inflation.

The grant ordered by King Abdullah will be distributed to families covered by social welfare to help them "fulfil their urgent needs during the holy month of Ramadan", the Saudi Press Agency said.

Devout Muslims fast from dawn to dusk during Ramadan, which begins on Monday, but overall food consumption usually increases in Gulf Arab countries because of lavish banquets in the evenings.

Saudi inflation hit a 30-year high of 10.6 percent in June and is expected to continue rising in the third quarter.

Inflation is a key challenge across the Gulf, where currencies are pegged to the ailing dollar, as their economies surge on windfall revenues from oil that has been racing to record highs. (Reuters)

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