The corona restrictions ahead of this year's hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca, will be an economic blow to Saudi Arabia, which usually withdraws large sums when the pilgrims make the pilgrimage.

- Clearly, it means billions in losses. In normal years, it is estimated that revenues are more than 6 billion dollars, says SVT's Middle East correspondent Stina Blomgren.

First time foreign Muslims are not allowed

80 percent of the country's income comes from oil, but the second largest source is the annual pilgrimages. And even though Saudi Arabia avoids the cost of arranging it all, the lack of pilgrims will still cause a lot of damage.

- This is the first time in modern history that Saudi Arabia does not allow foreign Muslims to enter, says Stina Blomgren.

- It means great losses for the state to limit it. It is also a prestigious and sensitive issue as the royal family has built much of its legitimacy on being the patron saint of the holy sites.

Several measures have already been taken to improve the country's declining economy.

- VAT has been tripled, which will feel like ordinary citizens. Grants for government employees have also been cut, and large future projects such as the construction of the new city of Neom have been frozen, says Stina Blomgren, and continues:

- The Saudi economy is forecast to shrink by about 7 percent this year according to the International Monetary Fund.

Crowded with cows in Kenya - would be food

In Mecca, taxi drivers can earn a full annual salary during the two to three months when pilgrims arrive. Today, the city is almost completely deserted.

However, the economic surges of a suspended shark are reaching all over the world. In Kenya, the farms are overcrowded. Thousands of cows are usually exported to Saudi Arabia to feed the pilgrims, but now the industry has to find new ways to get rid of the animals, the Kenya Livestock Producers Association tells the BBC. Travel agencies around the world are also hard hit, especially in Pakistan, which is the country from which most foreign pilgrims come.