Blame Oil: Saudi Arabia Gov't Dollar Debt Downgraded

The other two major rating agencies, Moody's and Fitch, have higher ratings for the kingdom.

S&P estimates that unless oil prices rebound meaningfully, Saudi Arabia will suffer deficits each of the next three years. The anti-Saudi media campaign has, by turns, concentrated on the notion that the Kingdom supports terrorism, and called for amnesty for a young Saudi man condemned to death on terrorism charges and for the release of a British man who has been imprisoned for breaking the law in Saudi Arabia.

"The agency depended on temporary and unsustainable factors", it said.

All of the market's 10 most heavily traded stocks dropped with builder Arabtec, which has projects in Saudi Arabia, dropping 6.1 percent.

Saudi Arabia has also come under fire for the harsh punishment dealt out to Ali Mohammed al-Nimr, a young dissident sentenced to death for encouraging pro-democracy protests when he was 16 years old. On average, prices would have to rise 8.5% to meet S&P's projections in this one important assumption. Production in the United States will continue to decline in response to cheaper oil, but this is not likely to translate into higher prices, the analysts said.

The report "Saudi Arabia Furniture Market Outlook 2020" is an outcome of comprehensive research and unbiased analysis of Saudi Arabia furniture market to present a clear picture of the past and present market trends.

"I think all we need to see is more cracking from their cousins, and Saudi will have the air cover they need to cut".

The worldwide Monetary Fund estimates the government is running an annual budget deficit of well over $100 billion and warned last week that the state's financial reserves would run out in under five years unless the government cut spending and raised non-oil revenues.

In short, RBC noted that there have been growing reports of discontent within the royal family since the ascent of King Salman to the throne in January.

"In our view, reconciling intra-family issues around succession could make the kingdom's policy decisions more challenging and hard to predict ..."

He is, however, third in line to the crown, with Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef, the 79-year-old king's nephew, now next in line.

The widening deficit and a high reliance on energy revenue "point to vulnerabilities in Saudi Arabia's public finances", the ratings company said.

"Clearly, OPEC's long-game strategy is working", said Harry Tchilinguirian, global head of commodity strategy, BNP Paribas.