Abstract
The production of dates has been increasing in Saudi Arabia during 1970-2019. However, this growth has not been accompanied by a proportionate increase in exports to global markets, with only 5.5% on average of the produced dates being destined for export in the same period (1970-2019). This study compares the competitiveness of Saudi date exports to several overseas markets and its effect on future exports. Our study hypothesizes that Saudi Arabia has the competitiveness of Saudi dates exports comparing others and this competitiveness could have a significant effect on Saudi's dates exports. We test such a hypothesis by using the market share data and the RCA for countries that were the top exporters of dates in 2019. The Partial Adjustment Model is employed to explore the impact of the competitiveness of Saudi dates on future exports. The results showed that Saudi Arabia as well as other major date-exporting countries (Iran, Iraq, Israel, Pakistan, Tunisia, and the UAE) have high competitiveness in the global market. By division of markets by groups of countries, Saudi Arabia has a comparative advantage over at least four countries among the top six exporters in three markets (Africa, Asia, and the OIC), while Saudi dates are less competitive in the American and European markets, where it never held a dominant position. The general trend equation indicates that the decline in the competitiveness of Saudi dates will continue during 2021-2025.