Qatar’s economy is on the upswing and growing at a fastest rate than ever. The financial situation of the country is stable and the country has maintained high international credit ratings. According to the International Competitiveness Report 2019 published annually by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Switzerland, Qatar ranked third in the world in terms of economic performance, which confirms the continued strong performance of the Qatari economy.
Qatar has emerged stronger despite siege because of its policy of economic openness which in turn has attracted more foreign investors into the country. The pillars of Qatar’s advanced ranking in the report included the economic performance in rank 3, the government efficiency in rank 5, and efficiency of the business sector ranked 10, while ranked 40 in Infrastructure hub.
The advanced ranking was supported by factors including strong economic performance represented by low unemployment rate, high fixed capital formation ratio of GDP, domestic saving ratio of GDP, trade balance of GDP ratio, high level of total productivity, in addition to rising per capita GDP and low inflation.
H E Dr Saleh bin Mohammed Al Nabit, Chairman of the Planning and Statistics Authority, welcomed the findings and said: “These results reinforce Qatar’s high international standing in various fields and will contribute to identifying the areas in which we need to consolidate the gains and do more of improvements.”
He said that Qatar’s Second National Development Strategy (2018-2022) sets clear objectives in the areas of economic infrastructure and private sector development that will lead to further economic and social growth. “Qatar has no choice but to diversify its economy. To achieve this, we have to continually improve efficiency and productivity and improve our international competitiveness,” he said
Qatar has risen to the top 10 in overall competitive indicators from 63 countries, mostly developed countries, compared to 14 in 2018. The assessment of competitiveness in the report is based on the views of businessmen, company managers surveyed by more than 200 companies who presented their views about the business environment and competitiveness of Qatar’s economy.
Earlier this month, noted rating agency S&P Global affirmed Qatar’s sovereign ratings with a stable outlook, and said that government’s assets will likely remain a core rating strength of the economy. The rating agency, in its report, projected that Qatar’s GDP is expected to grow by 2.8 percent and the current account surplus will be averaging 4.5 percent of GDP in 2019-2022, assuming lower hydrocarbon prices from 2021.
The agency highlighted that Qatari authorities have sufficient resources to continue managing the consequences of the blockade, and Qatar will continue to generate surpluses in its budgetary and external accounts over our 2019-2022 rating horizon.
Qatar is performing better with each passing day. The economy is one of the best performing in the region and has recorded a steady growth despite all odds.
