Officials and participants during the HSBC Economist Roadshow, in Doha, recently.
Doha: Qatar’s GDP is expected to grow by 4.6 percent in 2022 and by 2.3 percent in 2023, according to HSBC economists, who see positive economic outlook for the country, as well as the Middle East region in general.
The annual HSBC Economist Roadshow has arrived in the Middle East with an optimistic forecast for the region’s economic outlook in 2023 and expectations that the Gulf nations are on course to deliver some of the strongest growth in the world in 2022.
The HSBC team forecasts economic growth of 6.5 percent in 2022 for the economies of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), making this one of the strongest performing regions of the world this year, and delivering their strongest growth in at least a decade.
For 2023, the HSBC team forecasts GCC growth of 5 percent. In Qatar, GDP growth of 4.6 percent is forecast for 2022 and 2.3 percent in 2023.
“Our expert economic analysis team always provides actionable insights and perspectives especially in a time when conditions in the global economy are raising many questions about the outlook for growth, inflation and investment,” said Abdul Hakeem Mostafawi, CEO of HSBC in Qatar.
More than 170 clients and business leaders in Doha attended the presentations made by the HSBC economics team, made up of Simon Williams, Chief Economist, CEEMEA; James Pomeroy, Senior Global Economist; and Dominic Bunning, Head of FX Research in Europe.
They discussed the global and regional trends shaping the Middle East’s economies and their future prospects. The roadshow this year visits Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Kuwait City, Muscat, Manama and Riyadh.
Williams said: “We are seeing growth heading into next year with solid momentum and few signs of imbalances that threaten near-term performance. We are comfortable with the growth outlook which we see driven by ongoing gains in domestic demand”.
Pomeroy added: “Inflation may slow more quickly within the goods sector than elsewhere. Supply chains continue to ease up rapidly – the cost of sending freight from Asia to the US has now fallen by 85 percent since this time last year – and if demand for goods dwindles, discounting may come into play”.
Bunning further noted: “The key components that have supported USD strength such as the soft global growth dynamics, fragile risk appetite and relatively higher US yields, should continue in the months ahead, in our view”.
