Author

The upcoming $6bn integrated olefins and polyethylene facility at Ras Laffan, the largest ethane cracker in the Middle East and one of the largest in the world, is QatarEnergy’s largest investment ever in the country’s petrochemical sector and the first direct investment in 12 years.The project marks an important milestone in QatarEnergy’s downstream expansion strategy, HE the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, Saad bin Sherida al-Kaabi said.It will not only facilitate further expansion in Qatar’s downstream and petrochemical sectors, but will also reinforce the country’s integrated position as a major global player in the upstream, LNG and downstream sectors.The Ras Laffan Petrochemicals complex, expected to begin production in 2026, consists of an ethane cracker with a capacity of 2.1mn tonnes of ethylene per year.The 435-acre project site also includes two polyethylene trains with a combined output of 1.7mn tonnes per year of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer products.This will raise Qatar’s overall petrochemical production capacity to almost 14mn tonnes per year, HE al-Kaabi told Gulf Times Sunday.“The Ras Laffan petrochemical complex will double our ethylene production capacity, and increase our local polymer production from 2.6mn to more than 4mn tonnes per year, and place the utmost emphasis on sustainable growth and the environment.”Al-Kaabi noted: “You may remember that in 2019, we announced the selection of Chevron Phillips Chemical as our joint venture partner in a new petrochemical complex to be developed and constructed in Ras Laffan Industrial City. We mentioned at that time that the new complex will have an ethane cracker with a nameplate capacity of 1.9mn tonnes of ethylene a year.“Today I am pleased to announce that this capacity has been raised to 2.1mn tonnes per year, making it the largest ethane cracker in the Middle East and one of the largest in the world. In addition, this integrated complex, which is expected to begin production in 2026, will also include two high-density polyethylene derivative units with a total production capacity of 1.7mn tonnes per year.”QatarEnergy and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company (CPChem) created a joint venture, in which QatarEnergy will own a 70% equity share, and CPChem will own a 30% share.QatarEnergy also announced the award of the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract for the ethylene plant to SCJV, a joint venture company between Samsung Engineering Company of South Korea and CTCI of Taiwan.The EPC contract for the polyethylene plant was awarded to Maire Tecnimont of Italy, while Emerson of the USA was awarded the main automation contract.

QatarEnergy announced the Final Investment Decision (FID) with Chevron Phillips Chemical Company (CPChem) to build the Ras Laffan Petrochemicals complex - a $6bn integrated olefins and polyethylene facility- the largest ethane cracker in the Middle East and one of the largest in the world.An agreement was signed by QatarEnergy and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company to set up a joint venture company to implement the project, in which QatarEnergy will own a 70% equity share, and CPChem will own a 30% share.The agreement was signed at the QatarEnergy headquarters Sunday by HE the Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, also the President and CEO of QatarEnergy and Bruce Chinn, president and CEO of Chevron Phillips Chemical.The Ras Laffan Petrochemicals complex, expected to begin production in 2026, consists of an ethane cracker with a capacity of 2.1mn tons of ethylene per year, making it the largest in the Middle East and one of the largest in the world. It also includes two polyethylene trains with a combined output of 1.7mn tons per year of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer products, raising Qatar’s overall petrochemical production capacity to almost 14mn tons per year.The signing ceremony was attended by Mark Lashier, President and CEO of Phillips 66, and senior executives from QatarEnergy and CPChem.The integrated olefins and polyethylene facility at Ras Laffan marks QatarEnergy’s largest investment ever in the country’s petrochemical sector and the first direct investment in 12 years.QatarEnergy also announced the award of the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract for the ethylene plant to SCJV, a joint venture company between Samsung Engineering Company of South Korea and CTCI of Taiwan.The EPC contract for the polyethylene plant was awarded to Maire Tecnimont of Italy, while Emerson of the USA was awarded the main automation contract._____________________________________Read also:State-of-the-art Ras Laffan petrochemicals complex to promote energy efficiency: Al-KaabiRas Laffan polyethylene units to use Chevron Phillips Chemical’s MarTech loop slurry process: Chinn$6bn ethane cracker QatarEnergy’s largest investment ever in country's petrochemical sector _______________________________________The Ras Laffan Petrochemicals complex, expected to begin production in 2026, consists of an ethane cracker with a capacity of 2.1mn tons of ethylene per year, making it the largest in the Middle East and one of the largest in the world.It also includes two polyethylene trains with a combined output of 1.7mn tons per year of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer products, raising Qatar’s overall petrochemical production capacity to almost 14mn tons per year.Addressing the event, al-Kaabi said, “This marks QatarEnergy’s largest investment ever in Qatar’s petrochemicals sector and the first direct investment in 12 years. It will double our ethylene production capacity, and increase our local polymer production from 2.6mn to more than 4mn tons per year, and place the utmost emphasis on sustainable growth and the environment.”“There is no doubt that this cornerstone investment in Ras Laffan Industrial City marks an important milestone in QatarEnergy’s downstream expansion strategy. It will not only facilitate further expansion in the downstream and petrochemical sectors in Qatar, but will also reinforce our integrated position as a major global player in the upstream, LNG, and downstream sectors. This will be further enhanced once the new world-scale petrochemical project in Orange, Texas, in the United States of America comes online in partnership with Chevron Phillips Chemical, executed by our joint venture Golden Triangle Polymers Company” al-Kaabi noted.Minister Al-Kaabi concluded his remarks by saying: “We are delighted to enter into this exciting new venture with Chevron Phillips Chemical – a leading and highly respected international petrochemicals company, and a long-term partner with whom we have achieved many successes together building and operating plants safely and efficiently for more than 20 years. Together, our large and diverse portfolio will not just help meet the world’s growing needs for advanced plastics and petrochemicals, but will also enable balanced growth and facilitate human development in a responsible and sustainable manner. I would like to thank everyone who has worked to reach this milestone. We are also grateful to the leadership and guidance of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, for his unwavering support to Qatar’s energy sector.”The final investment decision on the Ras Laffan Petrochemicals complex comes less than two months after QatarEnergy and Chevron Phillips Chemical took the Final Investment Decision to execute the $8.5bn Golden Triangle Polymers Plant on the US Gulf Coast in Texas.

With physical markets expected to tighten further on the back of supply constraints and stronger global demand, energy prices might see further upside, benefiting Qatar – one of the largest global exporters of liquefied natural gas.Middle East’s leading bank QNB expects prices to be well supported in a range of between $90 and $115 per barrel over the coming quarters.“On the demand side, after several quarters of negative economic growth de-ratings by analysts and international organisations, there is now scope for a more positive outlook. In fact, we expect stronger than previously anticipated economic growth in all major economies over the next couple of quarters, including in the US, Europe and China,” QNB Economics said in a recent report.Qatar’s budget surplus is expected to widen to 12% of GDP in 2023 on the assumption that oil and gas prices will remain high, an analysis by regional banking group Emirates NBD has shown.Last year, according to an Emirates NBD estimate, Qatar's budget surplus may have widened to over 10% of GDP.Qatar’s budget has benefited from the surge in oil and natural gas prices in 2022, with oil and gas revenues up 67% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the first half of 2022, Emirates NBD said recently.According to the Ministry of Finance, the budget for fiscal 2023 estimated a surplus of QR29bn. The budget has set spending at QR199bn with total revenue of QR228bn next year.Qatar’s oil revenue is expected to be QR186bn and non-oil revenue QR42bn this year.Higher revenue projected for 2023 (QR228bn) has been mainly due to the adoption of an average oil price of $65 per barrel for fiscal 2023 in place of $55 per barrel in 2022.Higher budget surplus in the first three quarters of 2022 denotes favourable oil and gas prices, which clearly helps Qatar to manage its assets and debts quite remarkably.Recent data from the Ministry of Finance showed Qatar’s financial surplus exceeded QR77bn in the first nine months of 2022 compared to QR4.9bn during the period in 2021.Revenues during the first nine months of 2022 reached QR232.6bn, with QR193.9bn coming from oil and gas, and QR38.6bn from non-oil revenues, exceeding the 2021 total revenue of QR193.7bn.Thrice in the last 10 years, Qatar achieved similarly huge surpluses: 2012 (QR77bn), 2013 (QR106.3bn), and 2014 (QR108.6bn).At a meeting with editors of Qatari newspapers in Doha in December, HE the Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari said Qatar will use its budget surplus prudently by transferring it to a general reserve account in accordance with the provisions of the State Financial System Number 2 of 2015.The surplus, HE the minister said, will be used to prop up the new Financial Stability Fund besides bolstering the Qatar Central Bank reserves and reducing public debt.Recently, researcher FocusEconomics noted Qatar’s public debt will decline over the next three years from 39.9% this year to 38.7% of GDP in 2026.Next year, the country’s public debt has been estimated to be 40.8% and 39.7% in 2025.Qatar is already the “most highly rated” country (AA) in the GCC region by S&P.Moody’s has rated Qatar at ‘Aa3’ and Fitch at ‘AA-‘ , both top ratings.“Qatar is expected to further improve its ratings on favourable energy prices, abundant resources and prudent fiscal management. Budget surplus will help Qatar retire its debts earlier than expected,” an analyst told Gulf Times.

Qatar’s fiscal balance as a percentage of GDP is seen at 8.7% this year, even as researcher Oxford Economics estimates the country’s real GDP growth at 2.7% year-on-year (y-o-y) in 2023.The country’s current account balance as a percentage of GDP has been estimated at 14.3%.Inflation this year will drop to 2.5% from 4.6% in 2022, Oxford Economics said in a report yesterday. In 2021, Qatar recorded an inflation of 2.3%.Last year, Qatar’s GDP is estimated to have grown at 5.2% year-on-year while in 2021 it stood at 1.5%, the researcher noted. Fiscal balance as a percentage of GDP was estimated at 9.6%. In 2021, Qatar’s fiscal balance as a percentage of GDP was only 0.2%.The country’s current account balance last year stood at 17.3% and 14.7% in 2021.Qatar's headline PMI rose slightly to 49.6, indicating the subsiding effects of the FIFA World Cup, it said.Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) is an index of the prevailing direction of economic trends in the manufacturing and service sectors.Oxford Economics estimates the non-oil economy to lead GCC regional growth, rising by 4% in 2023.The GCC, the researcher estimates will achieve a real GDP growth of 2.9% in 2023, albeit much lower than the 7.3% achieved in 2022.In 2021, the region’s real GDP growth stood at 3.1%, Oxford Economics noted.The PMIs for both Saudi Arabia and the UAE eased to 56.9 and 54.2 in December, respectively, owing to slower output and new order inflows, the researcher said.“That said, activity in both economies remained in the expansionary zone, indicating that the outlook remains positive. Job creation in the Kingdom was the strongest in five years, but demand-side inflation inched higher,” Oxford Economics said.Oman has formally announced its 2023 budget. Based on an oil price of $55 per barrel, revenues are pencilled in at OMR10.05bn, and expenditures are expected at OMR11.35bn.This will move the budget account into a deficit of OMR1.3bn, or 3% of the GDP, after witnessing a surplus of OMR1.15bn in 2022. The government also highlighted that the budget surplus helped reduce the public debt from OMR20.8bn in 2021 to OMR17.7bn in 2022.“We forecast a much narrower gap, which balances expectations of lower oil production than assumed in the budget with higher expected oil price than the budgeted $55. Support for households will be maintained, while further non-oil revenue generating reforms, including the mulled income tax, look set to be delayed,” Oxford Economics noted.

Migrants' ability to remit has been protected by GCC countries by ensuring low inflation through direct support measures, a World Bank affiliate said in a report.Employment conditions for migrants were robust for the first months of 2022, boosted by labour shortages in the hospitality and health sectors of high-income countries, while windfalls tied to higher oil prices benefitted the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which boosted demand for migrant labour from South and East Asia, noted The Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development (Knomad), a World Bank initiative.Growth in remittances is expected to fall to 2% in 2023, as GDP growth in high-income countries continues to slow (from a projected 2.4% in 2022 to 1.1% in 2023), further reducing migrants’ wage gains in host countries.And downside risks, including a further deterioration in the war in Ukraine, volatile oil prices and currency exchange rates, and a deeper-than-expected downturn in major high-income countries, are substantial.The growth of remittance flows into South Asia during 2023 is expected to slow to 0.7 percent, supported by India, the report said. The year will stand as a test for the resilience of remittances from white-collar South Asian migrants in high-income countries.Higher inflation in the United States accompanied by an economic slowdown will soften remittance flows to India, with growth easing to 4%. The drop in oil prices from $98 to $85 per barrel (2002–03) combined with the decline in economic growth in the GCC will reinforce downward pressure on remittance flows to all South Asian countries.According to the World Bank – Knomad report, remittance costs remained high during the second quarter of 2022, at twice the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 3%t. According to the World Bank’s Remittance Prices Worldwide Database, the global average cost of sending $200 was 6% in the second quarter of 2022, not very different from the previous year.Among developing country regions, the cost was lowest in South Asia, at about 4.1%, while Sub-Saharan Africa continued to have the highest average cost, about 7.8%.Latin America and the Caribbean experienced the largest increase in total average costs, up from 5.6% to 6%, followed by Europe and Central Asia and the Middle East and North Africa.Meanwhile, the average cost of sending remittances to Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and East Asia and the Pacific fell. But remittance costs across many African corridors and for small islands in the Pacific remain above 10%.Banks continue to be the costliest channel for sending remittances, with an average cost of 11% during the second quarter of 2022; while post offices are recorded at 6.5%, money transfer operators at 5.2%, and mobile operators at 3.5%.Mobile operations remain the cheapest type of service provider, but they account for a small part of total transaction volumes (less than 1%).The burden of compliance with anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regulations continues to restrict new service providers’ access to correspondent banks.These regulations also affect migrants’ access to digital remittance services, particularly for migrants who do not have IDs. Recognising small remittances as low-risk from the viewpoint of money laundering could increase migrants’ access to digital remittance services and promote financial inclusion.That would also increase the access of new money transmitters to correspondent banking services and increase competition in the remittance markets, the World Bank – Knomad report showed.Ends

The world's oil demand is expected to increase by 2.2mn barrels per day year-on-year in 2023, Opec said in its latest monthly oil market report.The OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) oil demand is forecast to increase by 0.3mn bpd. This is mostly in OECD Americas, while other OECD regions are not expected to see noticeable growth.In the non-OECD, oil demand is forecast to increase by 1.9mn bpd with China and India seeing the largest growth.This forecast assumes the successful containment of Covid-19 and a resumption of pre-pandemic economic growth in China, while India’s oil demand is projected to be supported by continued healthy economic growth.Non-Opec supply growth in 2022 was estimated at 1.9mn bpd. The main drivers of growth are estimated to have been the US, Canada, Guyana, Russia, China and Brazil.US shale oil companies continued to focus on shareholder returns, with higher production costs amid supply chain shortages and inflation limiting overall production growth.In 2023, non-Opec supply is forecast to expand by 1.5mn bpd y-o-y.US tight oil output and offshore start-ups in Latin America and the North Sea are expected to drive growth. The US is expected to lead the way with a share of about 75% of total growth, followed by Norway, Brazil, Canada, Kazakhstan and Guyana.Non-Opec upstream sector investment in 2022 was estimated at around $424bn, up around 19% y-o-y. It is forecast at $459bn in 2023, up by 8% y-o-y.Going forward, several challenges still lie ahead, Opec noted. For example, persistently high inflation may necessitate further monetary tightening measures by major central banks.Rising interest rates, it said, will be a cause for concern for countries with high sovereign debt levels.Tight labour markets, amid calls for higher wages, will add pressure, as will continued supply chain issues.However, a resolution of the geopolitical conflict in Eastern Europe and a relaxation of China’s zero-Covid policy could provide some upside potential.Global GDP growth for 2023 is forecast at 2.5%.According to Opec, the global economy continued its recovery path throughout much of 2022, albeit at varying levels among regions, and with a notable slowdown towards the end of the year.The eurozone saw unexpectedly strong growth in H1,2022 before decelerating in H2, 2022, amid rising inflation that prompted the European Central Bank monetary tightening and concerns about a possible energy crunch in the winter heating season.The US economy faced challenges in H1,2022, but recovered somewhat in H2, 2022, supported by ongoing healthy consumption levels.In the non-OECD, China’s strict zero-Covid policy has dampened GDP growth in 2022.India witnessed strong economic growth in H1,2022, but decelerated slightly in Q3,2022 amid high inflation levels. For 2022, world GDP growth was estimated at 2.8%.

**media[5895]**The first ever FIFA Football World Cup in the history of the Middle East region, which was held in Qatar, had seen flight bookings to the country skyrocketing by 77% month-on-month in November 2022 and by more than 87% compared to November 2019, latest International Air Transport Association (IATA) data reveal.In November, most travellers to Qatar came from the Middle East, rather unsurprisingly. However, compared to other regions, it equalled to only 56% increase in bookings in November 2022 when compared to the same month in 2019, IATA Economics noted.The second runner up in November (in terms of travellers to Qatar) was Europe, with a 146% increase in ticket sales compared to the same month in 2019.Similarly impressive was the 1074% increase of bookings from Central and South America, although bookings from this region were the lowest among the regions in absolute terms.In the Middle East, bookings between Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Oman, as well as Qatar and Saudi Arabia, also increased because international travellers lodged in these countries and then shuttled to Qatar for specific matches.In particular, IATA noted the share of passengers booking a return flight from Saudi Arabia to Qatar with only 0-1 nights of stay increased from 5% in October to 16% in November.For the UAE, the share increased from 14% to 51%, and for Oman from 5% to 44%.Looking more closely at bookings to Qatar, ticket sales originating in Morocco – a surprising semi-finalist in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 – increased considerably in the week following its national team’s knockout of Spain in the Round of 16.In particular, spontaneous bookings from Morocco to Qatar for the day of the match against Portugal increased from a total of four bookings three days prior to the match to 1171 bookings two days before the match.For the match against France, IATA data show bookings jumped from five bookings three days before to a total of 1565 bookings two days before the match.The same applies for ticket sales from Argentina, the winning team of the tournament.Once the South American country qualified for the final against football heavyweight France, bookings to Qatar almost doubled. The majority of tickets for flights before the final were purchased two days before, indicating the Argentinian fans reacted quickly to travel to Qatar to see the final match.IATA economists, however, noted their data excludes charter flights, which in fact were quite significant in Argentina, increasing the total number of visitors.Air transport is vital for international sports events, allowing people to travel and support their teams. After two and half years of travel restrictions, people are eager to travel again despite the challenging circumstances that the world is facing at present.Middle East outlook: Middle East carriers are expected to post a profit of $268mn in 2023, after an estimated loss of $1.1bn in 2022. In 2023, passenger demand growth of 23.4% is expected to outpace capacity growth of 21.2%. Over the year, the region is expected to serve 97.8% of pre-crisis demand levels with 94.5% of pre-crisis capacity.The region has benefited from a certain degree of re-routing resulting from the war in Ukraine, and more significantly so from the pent-up travel demand using the region’s extensive global networks as international travel markets re-opened.Globally, IATA expects a return to profitability for the global airline industry in 2023 as airlines continue to cut losses stemming from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic to their business in 2022.In 2023, airlines are expected to post a small net profit of $4.7bn — a 0.6% net profit margin. It is the first profit since 2019 when industry net profits were $26.4bn (3.1% net profit margin).In 2022, airline net losses are expected to be $6.9bn (an improvement on the $9.7bn loss for 2022 in IATA’s June outlook). This is significantly better than losses of $42bn and $137.7bn that were realised in 2021 and 2020 respectively.

The share of remittances to India from five GCC countries including Qatar has dropped to 28% between 2016 and 2021 (from 54% earlier) according to a World Bank report.India’s remittance receipts are on track to reach $100bn in 2022, a report by Global Knowledge Partnership on Migration and Development (Knomad), a World Bank initiative, has shown.Between 2016-17 and 2020-21, the share of remittances from the US, UK, and Singapore increased from 26% to over 36%, while the share from the five GCC countries (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar) dropped from 54% to 28%, it said.The year 2022 will have been a memorable one for India as its remittance flows soar to $100bn from $89.4bn in 2021, growing at 12% compared to 7.5% in 2021.Several longer- and short-term trends that were obscured by the pandemic were catalytic in spurring remittance flows to India.First, remittances have benefited from a gradual structural shift in Indian migrants’ key destinations from largely low-skilled, informally employment in the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries to a dominant share of high-skilled jobs in high-income countries such as the US, the UK, and East Asia (Singapore, Japan, Australia, New Zealand).With a share of 23% of total remittances, the US surpassed the UAE as the top source country in 2020-21. About 20% of India’s emigrants are in the US and the UK.According to the US Census, of the approximately 5mn Indians in the US in 2019, about 57% had lived in the nation for more than 10 years.During this time, many earned graduate degrees that groomed them to move rapidly into the highest-income-earner category.The Indian diaspora in the US is highly skilled. In 2019, 43% of Indian-born residents of the US had a graduate degree, compared to only 13% of US-born residents.Only 15% of Indian-born residents aged 25 and older had no more than a high school degree, compared to 39% of US-born residents in that age group.Meanwhile, 82% of all Indians in the US (compared to 72% of all Asians) and 77% of foreign-born Indians were proficient in English.Higher education mapped on to high income levels with direct implications for remittance flows. In 2019, the median household income for Indians in the US was nearly $120,000 compared to about $70,000 for all Americans.The structural shift in qualifications and destinations has accelerated growth in remittances tied to high-salaried jobs, especially in services, the World Bank report showed.During the pandemic, Indian migrants in high-income countries worked from home and benefited from large fiscal stimulus packages.Post pandemic, wage hikes and record-high employment conditions supported remittance growth in the face of high inflation.Second, the economic conditions in the GCC (30% share of India’s remittances) also played out in India’s favour. The majority of the GCC’s Indian migrants are blue-collar workers who returned home during the pandemic.Vaccinations and the resumption of travel helped more migrants to resume work in 2022 than in 2021. GCC’s price support policies kept inflation low in 2022, and higher oil prices increased demand for labour, enabling Indian migrants to increase remittances and counter the impact of India’s record-high inflation on the real incomes of their families.Third, Indian migrants may have taken advantage of the depreciation of the Indian rupee vis-à-vis the dollar (10% between January and September 2022) and increased remittance flows, World Bank noted.

The Qatari banking sector's total assets increased by 0.9% MoM (up 0.9% in 2022) to reach QR1.845tn in November 2022, according to QNB Financial Services (QNBFS).Total loan book went up by 0.3% MoM (up 0.5% in 2022) and deposits moved up by 0.4% MoM (-1.6% in 2022) in November, QNBFS ‘Qatar Monthly Key Banking Indicators’ showed Monday.The private sector pushed the overall credit higher (up 0.8% MoM in November). As deposits gained by 0.4% in November, the LDR edged down to 127.6% vs 127.8% in October 2022.The overall loan book went up by 0.3% in November to reach QR1,222.9bn.Loans increase in November was mainly due to a rise by 0.8% from the private sector (+5.2% in 2022).Loans have gone up by 0.5% in 2022, compared to a growth of 7.8% in 2021. Loans grew by an average 7.6% over the past five years (2017-2021).The real estate, services and general trade segments were the main contributors toward the private sector loan growth for the month of November.The real estate segment (contributes nearly 22% to private sector loans) increased by 2.0% MoM (+8.7% in 2022).Services (contributes nearly 29% to private sector loans) went up by 0.7% MoM (+8.5% in 2022).General trade (contributes nearly 20% to private sector loans) gained 0.9% MoM (0.8% in 2022), while consumption and others (contributes nearly 21% to private sector loans) moved up by 0.2% MoM (+5.1% in 2022) during November.Outside Qatar loans declined by 2.9% MoM (-10.4% in 2022) during November.Domestic public sector loans went down slightly by 0.2% MoM (-6.9% in 2022). The government segment (represents nearly 30% of public sector loans) dropped by 0.9% MoM (-25.5% in 2022), while the semi-government institutions’ segment declined by 1.1% MoM (+1.1% in 2022).However, the government institutions’ segment (represents nearly 65% of public sector loans) loan book increased by 0.2% MoM (+4.5% in 2022).Deposits went up by 0.4% during November to reach QR958.2bn, QNBFS noted.Deposits gain in November was due to a 2.3% increase in private sector deposits. Deposits have gone down by 1.6% in 2022, compared to a growth of 7.6% in 2021. Deposits grew by an average 6.1% over the past five years (2017-2021)Private sector deposits moved higher by 2.3% MoM (+11.9% in 2022), pushing up the overall Qatar banking sector deposits for the month, QNBFS noted.On the private sector front, the companies and institutions segment rose 4.6% MoM (+23.8% in 2022). Meanwhile, the consumer segment went down slightly by 0.1% MoM (+1.9% in 2022) during November.Public sector deposits moved up marginally by 0.1% MoM (+10.2% in 2022) for the month of November 2022. Looking at segment details, the semi-government institutions’ segment had a huge jump by 15.9% MoM (+28.1% in 2022).However, the government institutions’ segment (represents nearly 60% of public sector deposits) declined by 3.1% MoM (+25.8% in 2022), while the government segment (represents nearly 25% of public sector deposits) edged lower by 0.1% MoM (-20.1% in 2022).Non-resident deposits continued its sharp fall for the year and fell by 3.3% MoM (-33.3% in 2022) in November 2022.An analyst said: “Assets increased by 0.9% mainly as domestic assets (predominantly domestic credit and domestic investments) increased by 1% and foreign assets (largely due from banks abroad and investments abroad) went up by 1.4%.“Loans went up by 0.3% mainly due to the private sector (real estate up by 2.0%, services up by 0.7% and general trade up by 0.9%). Deposits gained by 0.4% mainly due to the private sector (companies and institutions up by 4.6%).”

Qatar’s budget surplus is expected to widen to 12% of GDP in 2023 on the assumption that oil and gas prices will remain high, an analysis has shown.Last year, according to an Emirates NBD estimate, Qatar's budget surplus may have widened to over 10% of GDP. The regional banking group sees the budget surplus widening to 12% of GDP this year.Qatar’s budget has benefited from the surge in oil and natural gas prices in 2022, with oil and gas revenues up 67% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the first half of 2022, Emirates NBD said recently.Other revenues have also increased sharply in 2022, with top line revenue up 58% y-o-y in H1. Expenditure growth has been more restrained at 13% y-o-y, focused on capital spending projects. Current spending and wages and salaries have increased 11-12% y-o-y in H1, 2022.According to the Ministry of Finance, the budget for fiscal 2023 estimated a surplus of QR29bn. The budget has set spending at QR199bn with total revenue of QR228bn next year.Qatar’s oil revenue is expected to be QR186bn and non-oil revenue QR42bn this year.Higher revenue projected for 2023 (QR228bn) has been mainly due to the adoption of an average oil price of $65 per barrel for fiscal 2023 in place of $55 per barrel in 2022.Higher budget surplus in the first three quarters of 2022 denotes favourable oil and gas prices, which clearly helps Qatar to manage its assets and debts quite remarkably.Recent data from the Ministry of Finance showed Qatar’s financial surplus exceeded QR77bn in the first nine months of 2022 compared to QR4.9bn during the period in 2021.Revenues during the first nine months of 2022 reached QR232.6bn, with QR193.9bn coming from oil and gas, and QR38.6bn from non-oil revenues, exceeding the 2021 total revenue of QR193.7bn.Thrice in the last 10 years, Qatar achieved similarly huge surpluses: 2012 (QR77bn), 2013 (QR106.3bn), and 2014 (QR108.6bn).According to QNB Economics, crude oil prices could see a further upside, as the bank expects physical markets to tighten further on the back of supply constraints and stronger global demand.QNB expects prices to be well supported in a range of between $90 and $115 per barrel over the coming quarters.“On the demand side, after several quarters of negative economic growth de-ratings by analysts and international organisations, there is now scope for a more positive outlook. In fact, we expect stronger than previously anticipated economic growth in all major economies over the next couple of quarters, including in the US, Europe and China,” QNB Economics said in a recent report.Recently, researcher FocusEconomics noted Qatar’s public debt will decline over the next three years from 39.9% this year to 38.7% of GDP in 2026.Next year, the country’s public debt has been estimated to be 40.8% and 39.7% in 2025.

Curbside access restrictions imposed at Hamad International Airport (HIA) have been lifted following the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.Qatar’s two airports - HIA and Doha International Airport (DIA) imposed restricted curbside access from November 1 “to preserve the security, safety and comfort of all passengers and visitors during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.”Short-term parking rate during the first two hours(barring the grace period) will be QR15 for every 30 minutes Parking fee during the third hour will be QR25 for every 30 minutes, increasing to QR35 for every 30 minutes (fourth hour onwards)During the restricted period, access to the arrival and departure curbsides were opened only to authorised vehicles, such as Mowasalat (Karwa)’s limousines and taxis, authorised vehicles for persons with reduced mobility, vehicles transporting Qatar Airways first and business class passengers, and select airport bus shuttles.According to Hamad International Airport, short-term parking rate will now be QR15 during the second, third and fourth 30 minutes block.The first 30 minutes will be grace period, which means users will not have to pay anything if they exit the short-term parking zone before the 30-minute period elapsed.Short-term parking rate during the first two hours (barring the grace period) will be QR15 for every 30 minutes.The short-term parking rate during the third hour will be QR25 for every 30 minutes, increasing to QR35 for every 30 minutes (fourth hour onwards). HIA also said those who pre-book can save 20% on parking rates.

Beyond the Tarmac High inflation, interest rates and energy costs may put global air freight under mounting pressure in 2023 as headwinds continue to affect air cargo demand. A strong dollar affects air cargo and as many costs are denominated in the greenback, the currency’s appreciation adds another layer of cost on top of soaring inflation and high jet fuel prices. Revenues are expected to be $149.4bn, which is $52bn less than 2022 but still $48.6bn stronger than 2019, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). With economic uncertainty, cargo volumes are expected to decrease to 57.7mn tonnes, from a peak of 65.6mn tonnes in 2021. As belly capacity grows in line with the recovery in passenger markets, yields are expected to take a significant step back. IATA expects a fall of 22.6% in cargo yields, mostly in the latter part of the year when the impact of inflation-cooling measures are expected to bite. To put the yield decline in context, cargo yields grew by 52.5% in 2020, 24.2% in 2021 and 7.2% in 2022. Even the sizeable and expected decline leaves cargo yields well-above pre-Covid levels. This year, air cargo revenues played a key role in cutting airline industry losses with revenues expected to reach $201.4bn. That is an improvement compared with the June forecast, largely unchanged from 2021, and more than double the $100.8bn earned in 2019. “Air cargo continues to demonstrate resilience as headwinds persist. Cargo demand in October - while tracking below the exceptional performance of October 2021- saw a 3.5% increase in demand compared to September. This indicates that the year-end will still bring a traditional peak-season boost despite economic uncertainties. But as 2022 closes out it appears that the current economic uncertainties will follow into the New Year and need continued close monitoring,” noted Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general. The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) says the current situation is temporary and that later in 2023 central banks are expected to start reducing interest rates when inflation may come under control. Although before things improve, the industry can expect a further slowdown as energy costs are expected to remain high through winter 2022, particularly in Europe. But structurally the industry is in a good place, the association said and noted that towards the second half of 2023 it could see demand picking up compared to this year. TIACA says air cargo has shown quality performance in moving perishables, high tech, pharmaceutical and e-commerce commodities. Current retail inventory levels are high but when consumer spending resumes the industry can expect to see demand across the product range. “With Covid restrictions in China starting to relax as the government pulls back from the zero-Covid policy we can expect that production levels, which have been impacted periodically these past two years as manufacturing centres were shut down temporarily, to return to a more normalised situation,” TIACA says. There are many positive things, which the industry can focus on such as innovation, which since early 2020 has been phenomenal, from process innovation to technical innovation to people and skills innovation. One area that the association hopes to see improvement in 2023 is in the regulatory environment as air cargo needs a much more flexible regime to be in place so operators can deploy their equipment where the demand is needed. With giant shipping companies moving into air cargo and coming onshore offering integrated logistics services like forwarders, major forwarders are focusing on consolidation and trying to gain a position. “2023 might be unclear and the reality is that we will not know until we lift the lid, but the long-term prognosis for air cargo is solid with trade continuing to outpace the global economy,” TIACA says. Boeing’s 20-year forecast is for trade to grow 2.8% a year, cargo volume to rise 4.1% a year, and the global freighter fleet to grow from 2,240 aircraft in 2021 to 3,610 freighters by 2041. Huge investments are required to meet this demand and if major global players open up their wallets, the air cargo industry’s long-term prognosis will indeed be solid.

Qatari banks have seen their operating environment improving considerably thanks to favourable hydrocarbon prices in 2022, which helped them reduce their reliance on external funding.Leading credit rating agencies see a stable outlook on Qatari banks’ operating environment amid regional and global economic challenges.Local banks’ external debt is expected to drop this year and analysts believe there may be a broad stabilisation over the next couple of years.According to QNB Financial Services (QNBFS), Qatar banking sector's total assets had gone up 0.1% until October this year, totalling QR1.83tn.Driven by the private sector, the Qatari banking sector saw overall loans increasing by 0.4% to QR1.22tn in October, QNBFS said.Loans have edged up by 0.2% so far in 2022, compared to a growth of 7.8% in 2021. Loans grew by an average 7.6% over the past five years (2017-2021), QNBFS said.Deposits declined by 1.1% during October 2022 to QR954.2bn, due to a drop both in non-resident and public sector deposits.Deposits have gone down by 2% so far in 2022, compared to a growth of 7.6% in 2021. Deposits grew by an average 6.1% over the past five years (2017-2021), the report said.The pandemic impact on the Qatari banks' financial profiles has been contained due to the government’s fiscal response, Fitch Ratings said recently.The sector's healthy asset-quality metrics have largely stabilised (end-H1, 2022 average Stage 3 loans ratio: 2.8%) despite the Qatar Central Bank's (QCB) credit deferrals winding down since end-Q1,2022.Qatari banks’ profitability is strengthening, underpinned by higher interest rates and increasing economic activity. Loan impairment charges (LICs) generally reduced.As a result, Fitch Ratings noted the sector-average operating profit/risk-weighted assets (RWAs) ratio increased to 3% in H1,2022 (annualised; 2021: 2.5%; 2019: 2.8%).Qatari banks maintain adequate capital buffers (end-H1, 2022 average common equity Tier 1 ratio: 13.7%; minimum regulatory requirement: 8.5%). The sector's healthy pre-impairment operating profitability and adequate provisioning levels mitigate asset-quality risks.Net profit of the Qatari banks rose 4% year-on-year in the first half of 2022, driven by widening net interest margins and higher non-interest income, credit rating agency Moody’s said.The Qatari banks Moody's rates reported an aggregate net profit of QR12.9bn in the review period.Qatar banks are expected to see improvement in bottom-line and return on assets should reach pre-Covid levels by 2023, a top Moody’s executive said in September."We expect the banks' bottom-line profitability to continue to improve in 2022 as operating income continues to grow, while provisioning charges should stabilise," Nitish Bhojnagarwala, vice president, senior credit officer, Moody's told a roundtable.Qatari banks external debt is expected to drop by 8% this year, credit rating agency S&P said and noted there may be a broad stabilisation over the next couple of years.This, S&P said, will be due to many factors including high oil prices that should result in stronger domestic deposit growth than was seen over the past few years.S&P also expects Qatari banks financing needs to ease as several large infrastructure projects are delivered.New central bank rules, it said, have increased reserve requirements for short-term non-resident deposits and the weight of non-resident deposits in the calculation of bank's liquidity coverage and the net stable funding ratios, which will deter banks from using external sources to grow their balance sheets further.Beyond the risks stemming from banks' short-term external funding profiles, the financial system coped well with the pandemic and the subsequent withdrawal of forbearance measures, S&P noted.The largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, QNB had earned a net profit (before the impact of hyperinflation) of QR12.3bn in nine months up to September, up 20% on the same period last year.

National carrier Qatar Airways operated nearly 14,000 flights during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which concluded on December 18 and was chosen as ‘The Greatest Tournament in the 21st Century’ in a BBC News poll.Qatar Airways provided “dedicated” passenger overflow spaces outside Hamad International Airport and Doha International Airport, at no cost, where football festivities and live entertainment could be enjoyed while also providing storage space for luggage and carry-ons. This space allowed fans to continue enjoying the celebrations before they departed to their respective destinations.As part of the commitment to make the first ever FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 hosted in the Middle East and Arab world an “all-inclusive” gala event, Qatar Airways tied up with flydubai, Kuwait Airways, Oman Air and Saudia to connect match ticket holders to Doha via Match Day Shuttle flights for 24-hour experiences, during the tournament period.In 2017, Qatar Airways announced its partnership with FIFA as the 'Official Airline'. The alliance has gone on to connect and unite fans globally, with the national airline also sponsoring numerous football tournaments such as the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017, the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, the FIFA Club World Cup, and the FIFA Women's World Cup.In September, Qatar Airways was named “Airline of the Year” by the international air transport rating organisation, Skytrax, for an unprecedented seventh time. At a glittering event in London, the leading global airline also took home three additional awards including World’s Best Business Class, World’s Best Business Class Lounge Dining, and Best Airline in the Middle East.The year 2022 saw Qatar Airways enhancing its schedule and network by increasing frequencies to many key destinations across the world.Qatar Airways currently flies to more than 150 destinations worldwide, connecting through its Doha hub, Hamad International Airport.This year Qatar Airways became the first airline in the Middle East and Africa region to announce its commitment for an international SAF offtake agreement.Qatar Airways and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) producer Gevo, Inc have signed an offtake agreement, where the airline will purchase 25mn gallons of neat SAF over the course of five years with deliveries expected to commence in 2028 at various airports in California.Qatar Airways will be uplifting 5mn gallons of neat SAF every year and will blend it with its existing supply of conventional jet fuel.In October, Qatar Airways announced the “deepening of its relationship” with JetBlue through the expansion of the airlines’ codeshare agreement.This expansion allows JetBlue passengers to enjoy unrivalled travel options between the United States and 11 new destinations, in eight different countries across Africa and Asia via Doha’s Hamad International Airport.In August, Qatar Aviation Services (QAS), the subsidiary of Qatar Airways Group, announced its partnership with International Air Transport Association (IATA) to become the first ground handler globally to join the new expansion of the IATA Environmental Assessment Programme (IEnvA) for ground service providers.The IEnvA programme for ground service provides a framework for achieving environmental sustainability across all ground operations. Taking advantage of the knowledge and experience garnered from the airline programme, ground service providers can rely on its definitive guidance to reduce their impact on the environment, and improving health and safety for both employees and the community, while maintaining operational efficiency.In May, Qatar Airways and Virgin Australia unveiled a new strategic partnership that will significantly expand both airlines’ networks, lounges and loyalty programmes.The partnership gives travellers greater access, unparalleled customer experience and unique benefits when travelling between Australia and Qatar Airways’ global network, with convenient transit options across Qatar Airways’ Australian gateways and key Virgin Australia hubs, including Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.The strategic alliance will provide a critical trade and tourism boost for Australia, while opening a world of new travel opportunities for both airlines customers.The multi-year sponsorship agreement between Qatar Airways and Concacaf entered its second year in 2022, with the airline taking centre stage as the Presenting Sponsor for the 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League (CNL). The CNL presented by Qatar Airways is a premier international football competition of men’s national teams from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.Following six months of intense process and product audits, Qatar Airways Cargo announced in January that its strict adherence to the highest standards and relevant regulations has been accredited CEIV Live Animals certification by IATA.In November, Hamad International Airport opened the newly expanded terminal as part of its ‘Phase A’ expansion, which means the state-of-the-art airport will now be able to cater to 58mn passengers annually.The newly expanded terminal houses HIA’s second airport hotel – ‘Oryx Garden’ and ‘Orchard’ – an indoor tropical garden that has sourced 300 plus trees and 25,000 plants from sustainable forests around the world.Drenched in natural light and featuring sustainably sourced plants and shrubs, it offered a show-stopping, luxury shopping experience to fans with many first-of-a-kind retail outlets.In the expanded terminal, Qatar Duty Free started offering retail and F&B options with more than 65 retail and dining outlets spread across its three levels.The expansion now enables travellers to “seamlessly transfer” from one area to another, greatly reducing their wait time at the airport.

QatarEnergy made significant strides in realising the North Field Expansion by choosing partners this year for both North Field South (NFS) and North Field East (NFE) expansion, which is the global industry’s largest ever LNG project.This unique project is characterised by the highest health, safety, and environmental standards, including carbon capture and sequestration, to reduce the project’s overall carbon footprint to the lowest levels possible.The North Field expansion plan includes six LNG trains that will ramp up Qatar’s liquefaction capacity from 77 mtpy per year to 126 mtpy by 2027.Four trains will be part of the North Field East and two trains will be part of North Field South project.In January this year, QatarEnergy announced the awarding of a major Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation (EPCI) Contract for the offshore scope of its North Field Expansion Project to McDermott Middle East Inc.The scope for the awarded contract includes some 13 normally unmanned wellhead platforms topsides (eight for NFE and five for NFS), in addition to various connecting pipelines and the shore approaches for the NFE pipelines, beach valve stations and buildings.In March, His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani inaugurated the Barzan Gas Plant at a special ceremony held at Ras Laffan Industrial City.The Barzan Gas Plant will produce and process natural gas from the North Field to serve the requirements of local power generation and water desalinisation.It will also produce associated hydrocarbon products for supply to local refinery and petrochemical industries as well as for export to international markets.In the same month, QatarEnergy’s updated Sustainability Strategy set aggressive targets by capturing in excess of 11mn tonnes of CO2 annually in the country by 2035.QatarEnergy’s Sustainability Strategy outlines multiple initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including flagship projects such as the further deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology.These projects will further reduce the carbon intensity of Qatar’s LNG facilities by 35% and of its upstream facilities by at least 25% (compared to previous targets of 25% and 15%, respectively) bolstering Qatar’s commitment to responsibly supply cleaner LNG at scale in support of the energy transition.In April, Industries Qatar (IQ) and Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding (MPHC) gave their approval to Qatar Vinyl Company (QVC) for a new PVC (polyvinyl chloride) project with 350,000 tonnes per annum capacity at an estimated cost of $239mn.In the same month, QatarEnergy signed a series of time-charter parties (TCPs) with a subsidiary of Mitsui O.S.K Lines (MOL) for the long-term charter and operation of four LNG ships, constituting the first batch of TCPs awarded under QatarEnergy’s massive LNG shipping programme.In April, a joint venture between Técnicas Reunidas SA (TR) and Wison Engineering (Wison) was also selected as the EPC contractor and awarded a lump-sum contract by QatarEnergy for the expansion of the sulfur handling, storage, and loading facilities within Ras Laffan Industrial City.In June and July, the $29bn North Field East (NFE) expansion, the single largest project in the history of global LNG industry, saw QatarEnergy joining hands with five global energy companies – TotalEnergies, Shell, ExxonMobil, Eni and ConocoPhillips.The five partners of QatarEnergy in the prestigious project were chosen through a competitive process that started in 2019, which will expand Qatar’s LNG export capacity from the current 77mn tonnes per year (mtpy) to 110 mtpy by 2026.While it was Eni’s first entry ever into Qatar’s upstream sector, the four other global energy companies - TotalEnergies, ExxonMobil, Shell and ConocoPhillips - have been QatarEnergy’s partners in the energy industry for many years.The multi-billion dollar North Field Expansion, the largest LNG development in global history, will generate substantial revenues for Qatar and hugely contribute to the country’s GDP, noted HE the Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad bin Sherida al-Kaabi.The North Field expansion, comprising North Field East (NFE) and North Field South (NFS), will provide significant benefits for all sectors of the Qatari economy during the construction phase and beyond, al-Kaabi said in reply to a question by Gulf Times at a media event at QatarEnergy headquarters in June.In July, Dolphin Energy marked 15 years of operations after recording the first gas flow from Qatar to the UAE on July 10, 2007.Dolphin Energy’s major strategic initiative, the Dolphin Gas Project, involves the production and processing of natural gas from Qatar’s North Field, and transportation of the dry gas by sub-sea export pipeline from Qatar to the UAE, which began in July 2007.In August, QatarEnergy awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to Samsung C&T for its QR2.3bn industrial cities solar power project (IC Solar).This project includes two large scale photovoltaic (PV) solar power plants to be built in Mesaieed Industrial City (MIC) and Ras Laffan Industrial City (RLIC) and is expected to start electricity production by the end of 2024.In September, QatarEnergy announced that it selected TotalEnergies as the first international partner in the multi-billion dollar North Field South (NFS) expansion project.In the same month, QatarEnergy signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with General Electric (GE) to collaborate on developing a carbon capture roadmap for the energy sector in Qatar.In October, QatarEnergy chose Shell as its second international partner in the North Field South (NFS) expansion project.In October HE the Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad bin Sherida al-Kaabi, also the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, received the 2022 ‘Energy Executive of the Year’ award, which was presented to him by Energy Intelligence in London.In October, QatarEnergy announced an oil discovery in the 4-BRSA-1386D-RJS well in Brazil's world class Sepia oil field, which is located in the prolific Santos Basin in water depths of about 2,000 meters off the coast of Rio de Janeiro.In October, Qatar’s first and one the region’s largest solar plants was inaugurated by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani at Al Kharsaah.The multi-billion dollar 800MW Al Kharsaah Solar PV Power Plant (KSPP) was constructed on a 10sq km land area and can provide the national grid with about 10% of peak electricity demand.In the same month, QatarEnergy announced the signing of a share sale and purchase agreement with Qatar Electricity and Water Company (QEWC) to acquire QEWC’s 49% interest in Siraj Energy, which would result in Siraj Energy becoming a wholly-owned affiliate of QatarEnergy, subject to customary approvals.October also saw QatarEnergy selecting ConocoPhillips as its third and final international partner in the North Field South (NFS) expansion project, which comprises two LNG mega trains with a combined capacity of 16 mtpy.In October, His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani issued Amiri Decision No 48 of 2022 on restructuring the QatarEnergy Board of Directors.The decision stipulated that the QatarEnergy Board of Directors would be reconstituted with His Highness the Deputy Amir Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad al-Thani as Chairman.In October, Affiliates of QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil have agreed to independently offtake and market their respective proportionate equity shares of LNG produced by the Golden Pass LNG Export Project located in Sabine Pass, Texas, the US.In November, QatarEnergy announced a successful bid for Parcel 8 of the Orphan Basin, offshore the province of Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada, expanding its North American footprint.In the same month, QatarEnergy entered into a 27-year Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) for the supply of 4mn tonnes per year of LNG to the People's Republic of China.In November, QatarEnergy and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company (CPChem) announced they have taken a Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Golden Triangle Polymers Plant, an $8.5bn world-scale integrated polymers facility in the Texas Gulf Coast area in the US.In November, Qatar’s first long-term LNG supply deal with Germany was announced with QatarEnergy signing two LNG sale and purchase agreements (SPAs) with ConocoPhillips affiliates for the delivery of up to 2mn tonnes per year for at least 15 years.This month, QatarEnergy and Japan’s Qatar Petroleum Development Company (QPD) signed a new agreement for the continued development and production of the Al-Karkara and A-Structures oil fields, located in the territorial waters of Qatar.Also in December, QatarEnergy, in a consortium with TotalEnergies and Petronas, has been awarded the Agua-Marinha Production Sharing Contract (PSC), under the 1st Cycle Permanent Offer round, by Brazil’s National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels (ANP).

Qatar has achieved “commendable” progress in developing medium-term fiscal frameworks (MTFFs) with fiscal anchors that clearly incorporate multi-year revenue initiatives and spending priorities, International Monetary Fund said in a report.As well as stronger linkages with budget planning and execution, the MTFFs should be closely coordinated with medium and long-term government development strategies and plans and supported by sound fiscal institutions, IMF said in a recent report “Economic prospects and policy challenges for the GCC countries”.Additionally, given the increasing role of GCC Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs), there is a need to enhance sovereign asset-liability management frameworks closely aligning them with MTFFs.To further enhance the credibility of fiscal policy, regular public communication of fiscal plans and outcomes, as well as of the government strategy on oil revenue management and its impact on reserves and domestic liquidity would be beneficial.On GCC energy producers, IMF said the impact of the high oil prices and a jump in demand for non-Russian gas is likely to expand their role in global energy flows.For instance, IMF noted QatarEnergy announced joint-venture agreements with five of the biggest oil companies to develop a $29bn project known as the North Field East, which aims to increase Qatar’s annual LNG output from the current 77mn tons per year (mtpy) to 110mtpy by end-2027, and further to 126mtpy by 2028.Since the war in Ukraine, Qatar has also signed partnership agreements with several European countries to increase gas supply to these countries over the medium term.Similarly, the Saudi Arabian authorities had already announced medium-term plans to lift oil production capacity by more than 1mbpd to reach over 13mbpd by 2027 (as well as to develop gas production).According to IEA estimates, with an eye on energy security Middle East National Oil Companies (NOCs) are the only ones among all regions that are planning to invest more in oil and gas activities in 2022 as compared to 2019.On Qatar’s economic growth the report said the country’s non-hydrocarbon growth is expected to reach 4% in 2022, supported by favourable hydrocarbon prices and the start of the North Field expansion project, as well as the World Cup-induced buoyancy.Its hydrocarbon growth, however, is projected to be "modest" in 2022 as Qatar is already producing at capacity.Inflation in the GCC region is rising but remains broadly contained, IMF noted.Inflation in GCC has picked up from 0.7% (y-o-y) in July 2021 to 3.2% (y-o-y) in July 2022, mainly driven by higher food prices.Inflation is expected to reach 3.6% on average this year (ranging from Saudi Arabia at 2.7% to Qatar and Kuwait at 4 ½ percent and the UAE above 5%).Subsidies and price caps on certain products (e.g., some food products, gasoline, electricity and water), a strong dollar that helps reduce import costs, subdued rent prices amidst higher supply in particular for some segments (e.g., villas), a limited share of food in the CPI basket, and continued labour market slack (example in Saudi Arabia) have helped contain pressures from supply- side shocks and higher inflation in trading partners.Over the medium term, inflation is expected to moderate to about 2% as global inflationary pressures abate, IMF noted.

Qatar will continue high spending on projects supporting the local economy, HE the Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari said and noted some 22 new projects will be implemented in 2023, at a total cost of QR9.8bn.Addressing editors of various Qatari media outlets in Doha yesterday, al-Kuwari said the continued high spending on public projects is in line with the State’s plans to complete and finalise infrastructure projects, especially those related to existing and new lands of citizens as well as projects supporting the local economy.The allocations for major projects (for 2023) are to decrease by 13.6%, compared to 2022, to reach QR63.9bn with the completion of several infrastructure and strategic projects, the latest of which is the expansion of Hamad International Airport, prior to the start of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.“As part of efforts to ensure a dignified life and advanced standard of living for Qatari citizens, an increase in salaries by QR4bn (compared to 2022) to QR62.6bn has been set in 2023 budget. This comes after His Highness the Amir’s decision to raise pension for retirees,” al-Kuwari noted.This increase, the minister noted, is caused by higher rates of public sector employment for 2023, prompted by the new government structure approved by His Highness the Amir towards the end of 2021. Spending will also cover grants, allowances and retirement based on the recent pension plan, which sets a minimum age and period of service.Qatar, he said, will continue to focus on the health and education sectors, with QR21.1bn allocated to the health sector, about 11% of the total expenditures, and QR18.1bn for the education sector, nearly 9% of the total expenditures.While spending on the sports and culture sector will drop to QR9.3bn in fiscal 2023, al-Kuwari noted “it is because of the completion of all projects related to FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. The assets already developed will still give Qatar an advantage when presented with an opportunity to host other sporting events and contribute to realising the state’s goal of becoming a global sports hub.”

Driven by higher LNG revenues from the North Field expansion, Qatar expects to achieve a double-digit growth by 2027, said HE the Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari.Addressing editors of various Qatari media outlets in Doha Tuesday al-Kuwari said the national economy is expected to grow by 4.5% in 2023 as per International Monetary Fund (IMF) calculations.At the event, al-Kuwari made a presentation on Qatar’s budget for the fiscal year 2023, which has set spending at QR199bn with total revenue of QR228bn, generating an estimated surplus of QR29bn.Qatar’s oil revenue is expected to be QR186bn and non-oil revenue QR42bn in 2023.Higher revenue projected for next year (QR228bn) has been mainly due to the adoption of an average oil price of $65 per barrel for fiscal 2023 in place of $55 per barrel in 2022.“This increase is the result of a remarkable recovery in global energy prices during the current year, which international financial institutions estimate will continue to rise in the medium term. Total oil and gas revenues for the next year are estimated at QR186bn compared to QR154bn in 2022, which represents an increase of 20.8%,” al-Kuwari noted. The conservative figure of $65 per barrel on which the 2023 budget has been based is part of the strategy of the Ministry of Finance to allocate financial resources towards existing commitments expected during the year to fund National Development Strategy (NDS) programmes and projects.Non-oil revenues for 2023 remain stable at QR42bn, compared to the 2022 budget, he said. The Ministry of Finance is currently co-ordinating with relevant authorities to follow up on the implementation of some measures that would increase non-oil revenues during 2023.Some of these measures, al-Kuwari noted, will include expanding the list of goods covered by excise tax and reviewing some government fees.“Estimates of revenues resulting from the possible implementation of these measures (during 2023) were not added to the budget based in line with the Ministry of Finance’s conservative approach to public revenue estimates,” the finance minister said.Al-Kuwari noted that Qatar continues to focus on the health and education sectors, with QR21.1bn allocated to the health sector, about 11% of the total expenditures, and QR18.1bn for the education sector, nearly 9% of the total expenditures.On the other hand, he said spending on the culture and sports sector is estimated at QR9.3bn, compared to QR16.6bn in the 2022 budget, or 5% of the total budget. The decline in spending on the culture and sports sector is attributed to finalising all projects tied to the hosting of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and related expenses.Qatar to implement VAT only after ‘comprehensive’ studyQatar will implement value added tax (VAT) only after a comprehensive study, HE the Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari said Tuesday.“We have not set any timeframe for VAT implementation,” he said in reply to a question at a media event Tuesday.The VAT framework treaty adopted by the GCC has called for each member state to impose a 5% VAT on designated goods and services.“We will look at tax regime from all facets seriously to see its impact on the citizens and society,” al-Kuwari said.