EXPORTS from Qatar continue to increase which demonstrates the resilience and strength of country’s economy. The rising exports show that the domestic economy has performed well despite difficult situation created by coronavirus pandemic.
Rising exports play a crucial role in any country’s economy as it leads to increase in foreign exchange reserve. According to the recent figures released by the Planning and Statistics Authority, Qatar’s foreign merchandise trade balance, which represents the difference between total exports and imports, showed a surplus of QR13.2bn in March 2021. When compared to the corresponding month the previous year, the trade surplus has increased by QR5.5bn, or 72.7 percent compared to March 2020.
The total value of exports of goods, including exports of goods of domestic origin and re-exports, in March 2021 reached QR22.1bn, showing an increase of 38.2 percent compared to the same month in 2020. In March 2021, Japan was at the top of the countries of destination of Qatar’s exports with close to QR3.4bn, a share of 15.5 percent of total exports, followed by South Korea with almost QR3.1bn and a share of 14.2 percent, and India with about QR2.9bn, a share of 13.0 percent.
Exports have shown a consistent rise in the past few months. In December 2020, the total exports of goods (including exports of goods of domestic origin and reexports) amounted to around QR17.1bn, showing an increase of 3.3 percent compared to November 2020.
Similarly, Qatar’s foreign merchandise trade balance showed a surplus of QR9.1bn in November, registering a rise of nearly QR2bn or 28.6 percent compared to October 2020. The total value of exports of goods, including exports of goods of domestic origin and reexports, in November 2020 reached QR16.6bn. Other sectors of the domestic economy are performing well despite challenging conditions.
The overall monthly Producer Price Index (PPI) of Qatar’s industrial sector for March 2021 was estimated at 60.8 points, showing an increase of 3.6 percent compared to the previous month’s PPI (February 2021). When compared on year-on-year (Y-o-Y) basis, the PPI of March 2021 showed an increase of 23.6 percent against PPI of the corresponding month last year (March 2020), official data released by the Planning and Statistics Authority showed.
PPI of March 2021, when compared with its counterpart in previous year (March 2020), there was an increase of 27.8 percent. Helped by the resilience of Qatari economy and the proactive policies by government departments, the exports are expected to rise in coming months
