Doha, Qatar — The year 2022 was an exceptional year for the Qatari economy, it was the year of the country’s resounding success in hosting the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, and the Qatari economy had shown record performance during it, its latest indicators highlight the achievement of a real growth rate at constant prices of 6.3 percent during the second quarter of this year on an annual basis, compared to the same period last year, with inflation controlled at around 5.30 percent last November at an annual rate.
Financial surplus, at the level of public finances, the actual data of the budget of Qatar, during the first nine months of 2022, showed the achievement of a surplus exceeding QR 77 billion, compared to QR 4.9 billion, during the same period of 2021, and this surplus came mainly from the noticeable increase in total revenues, which reached the level of QR 232.6 billion, with the control of expenditures recorded QR 155.2 billion, and this coincided with the recovery of oil prices, which during the past period fluctuated between US$80 to US$100 per barrel, noting that the price of the budget of the year the current was based on US$55 per barrel, which had maintained the financial balance and reduced the effects of oil price fluctuations on the performance of public finances.
Powerful ratings, despite the fluctuations and crises witnessed by the global economy in recent years, the solidity of the Qatari economy has been confirmed by international rating agencies.
The year, which departed a few days back, was crowned with excellent ratings for the Qatari economy, as the Standard & Poor’s credit rating agency raised the rating of the State of Qatar from “-AA” to “AA” during the year 2022, and Moody’s credit rating agency raised the outlook for the country from stable to positive.
In the same context, Fitch and Capital Intelligence agencies have continued to rate Qatar’s sovereign rating at the “AA” level with a stable outlook, which reflects the State of Qatar’s strong creditworthiness.
Qatar’s Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari noted at a recent press conference that the improvement of the country’s credit rating confirms the strength and flexibility of the local economy, in addition to the financial stability witnessed by the State, which increases the attractiveness of the State of Qatar to foreign investments, and contributes to reducing the cost of borrowing for the State and its institutions.
Al Kuwari pointed out that the public debt of Qatar has decreased from 58 percent in 2021 to about 44.5 percent of GDP, due to the State’s repayment of outstanding amounts of external debt, in addition to the growth in GDP at current prices, the rise in energy prices, and the State’s fiscal policy of controlling spending, raising its efficiency and reducing the level of public debt, especially external, which has contributed to the improvement of the country’s credit rating.
New products, as for the indicators of the industrial sector, data issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry revealed the registration of 1,100 new local products, the operation of 17 new factories, and the value of exports of local origin reached the level of QR 136 billion, and the rate of compliance of factories with industrial requirements by 72 percent in the third quarter of this year, while the number of workers in factories increased by 840 workers, and the average time spent for industrial development services reached 1.5 days.
In the same context, the ministry pointed out that 18,823 new trade registers were issued between January and the end of August 2022, an increase of 132 percent compared to the same period last year, and 17,654 new trade licenses were issued between January and the end of August 2022, an increase of 138 percent compared to the same period last year, in addition to the renewal of 30,414 trade registers, and the renewal of 35,908 trade licenses in the same period.
Regarding the developments in the energy sector, 2022 witnessed great vitality converted with the signing of agreements for completing the two expansions projects of the North-East and South fields to increase the capacity of Qatar’s natural gas production from 77 million tons to 126 million tons per year, in addition to local projects to increase the global supply of the LNG through QatarEnergy Company which is supplying the global market annually with18 million tons of LNG since lunching the Golden Pass Project production in Texas (US) prior to the end of 2024.
Also, QatarEnergy confirmed that it continues to implement its programs to meet the future requirements of its tankers fleet of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) which is connected to the expansion of production in the North Field and Golden Pass projects, and to ensure a reliable supply of additional clean energy to the world.
The country’s energy sector was enhanced during 2022 with the startup Al Kharsaah solar power plant with a production capacity of 800 megawatts, which occupies an area of 10 square kilometers and produces electricity with photovoltaic technology, and this first its kind project was completed with a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement.
It’s noted that Qatar Energy joined as an official co-sponsor of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 to reflect the continued support for the sport in general, and football in particular, as the most popular game in the world of sport.
In terms of foreign investment, the FDI Markets showed, Qatar attracted 71 percent of total investments in the Middle East during the second quarter of 2022, providing 6,680 jobs in 11 different projects.
With investments valued at USD 19.2 billion, this was reported in a media brief issued last August by the Investment Promotion Agency Qatar (IPA) indicating that the software, information technology and business services sectors, financial services, and the oil and gas ranked in the first place in the investment attractiveness in Qatar as reflected by these reports.
Qatar Central Bank (QCB) raised the interest rate on seven consecutive occasions during the current year concurrently with US Federal Reserve Bank interest rate increase. At the same time, QCB increased its international reserves and foreign currency liquidity to reach QR 223.985 billion last November, an increase of 6.82 percent compared to QR 209.675 billion in the same month in 2021.
Also, the Stock of gold rose from QR 6.943 billion to QR 18.789 billion by the end of November 2022.
In the same context, QCB issued the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 commemorative currencies which was one of the most prominent activities of the last year in 2022, which is an essential contribution of the banking sector to this historic event of its kind in the Middle East and Arab region.
With regard to the aspect of food security, the Qatari economy has achieved remarkable stability in the field of food security, as Hassad Food Company, has strengthened its international investment portfolio, achieving a remarkable return in value of 9 percent during the current year, as the company has investments in the food and agricultural field, in the grain, meat, poultry, livestock and fish sectors, in a number of countries such as: Australia, Canada, Turkey, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Sudan. These efforts have resulted in the State of Qatar ranking first in the Arab world in the global food index.
At the local level, Hassad has nine strategic local investments aimed at supporting the food security efforts of the State of Qatar, as it operated Al Khor and Al Ruwais fish markets this December, and 5.3 million boxes and 219 thousand pallets were received in Al Sailiya Central Market, and in Umm Salal Central Market, more than 19.2 thousand tons of fish were received, while Al-Wakra Central Market recorded the receipt of more than 100,000 heads of livestock, and the camel market witnessed bidding on more than 18,000 heads of camels, it also marketed 20 million kilos of vegetables, provided agricultural services to 400 local farms, and succeeded in producing nearly 13 thousand tons of green fodder produced locally, and the sale of about 100 thousand tons of subsidized fodder (barley and chard) to citizens, as well as the sale of more than 17 thousand green fodder and nutritional supplements produced locally and imported.
The company also developed strategic grain stores, bringing their total capacity to 300,000 tons of grain, as well as adding new stores, bringing the total to 25 stores with a capacity of 12,000 tons per store. In addition, it succeeded in producing more than 6,000 tons of poultry and 100 million of table eggs locally, and in the field of date production, the National Company for Food Processing (NAFCO) said that it has manufactured more than 2,000 tons of dates, marketed more than 650 tons of dates locally, and exported 500 tons of dates abroad through charities in cooperation with the Ministry of Municipality.
In terms of the private sector and the financial and business sector, the Qatar Chamber continued its efforts to support the development of entrepreneurial businesses in the country, and to promote available investment opportunities. It also adopted initiatives in the interest of the private sector, such as joining the United Nations Global Compact, which is considered the largest global initiative for corporate sustainability. It also launched a platform to rotate workers in this sector after its modernization.
With the aim of helping local companies obtain employment from within the local market, it opened an office at its headquarters for the Ministry of Labor to speed up the completion of sector transactions, as well as its contribution to simplifying the use of temporary entry books for television broadcasting equipment during the World Cup, and issuing a comprehensive guide on various commercial and economic activities.
According to the Chamber’s reports, by last October 31, it had completed 49,796 electronic transactions, 23,161 paper transactions, while the number of associates reached 75,016, and issued 49,576 certificates of origin for private sector exports, including 37,237 electronic certificates, and 3 cards of temporary entry of goods and merchandise, and 5 books of the global transport system of goods across international land borders,
in addition to strengthening its digital infrastructure, aimed at facilitating the smooth completion of transactions for members, companies and affiliated institutions, it also continued to equip its new headquarters in Lusail City, which is expected to open this year.
On the other hand, air traffic during the current year witnessed a large operational intensity, which reached its climax during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, when it recorded 26,425 air traffic through Hamad and Doha International Airports.
Statistics issued by the Civil Aviation Authority showed that air traffic recorded during 10 months (from January to October) about 174,274 air movements, an increase of about 27 percent, compared to the same period in the previous year 2021, and the air traffic in 10 months reached 137,352 movements, and the total air traffic this year, from its beginning to the end of the tournament, reached 200,699 air movements, which reflects the momentum of tourism flows in the country, and the continuous activity at Hamad and Doha International Airports.
The number of passengers until last October reached 28,875,434 passengers, an increase of 114 percent, compared to the same period last year 2021, as the number of passengers until October last year reached 13,462,802 passengers.
At the global level, the year 2022, was a year full of important economic events that were strongly affected by the Russian-Ukrainian war, which resulted in record rises in energy prices, as a report issued by the International Monetary Fund said that the world has shifted from abundant and cheap energy to a state of scarcity in light of the low investment and the outbreak of war, pointing out that the past decade represented the dawn of an era of abundant energy, in light of the rapid growth in the production of hydrocarbons and renewable energy, and Gas prices in Europe reached unprecedented levels in the third quarter of 2022, nearly 14 times higher than their level in the third quarter of 2019. At the same time, gas prices in the United States tripled, and global oil prices increased by nearly 40 percent.
Although prices have declined somewhat since the third quarter of 2022, the increase in energy prices is one of the main drivers of rising inflation, and is a major burden on economic growth around the world. However, despite these global developments and fluctuations, the Qatari economy was able to record strong performance rates on most macroeconomic indicators, and looks forward with more confidence to consolidate its leadership this year at all levels.
(With QNA inputs)