Qatar’s GDP at QR361bn in H1

The total value of Qatar’s gross domestic product (GDP) for the first-half (H1) of 2012 has reached QR361bn ($98.90bn), registering an impressive eight percent growth  as compared to the second half of 2011 at QR334bn, Al Sharq reported yesterday.

Despite financial crisis in the European Union and a global economic slowdown, Qatari economy continued to perform well during the first six months of this year. Official sources close to the daily revealed that the total value of GDP has reached close to the $100bn mark in the said period, QR27bn ($7.4bn) up compared to the second half of 2011, which was QR334bn ($91.51bn).

The sources pointed out that the GDP in the second quarter (Q2) of this year was registered at QR185bn, QR9bn up from the first quarter (Q1).

The sources also confirmed that according to the second quarter results, the state registered a budgetary surplus of about QR15bn in the period as compared to QR9bn after the announcement of the first quarter figures, an increase of QR6bn.

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Inflation rates fell to its lowest level at one percent in the second quarter of 2012 compared to 1.19 percent in the first quarter of 2012 and 2.10 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011. The GDP growth in the second quarter of 2012 remained between 5-6 percent versus four percent in the first quarter.

According to the statistics issued by the Qatar Central Bank (QCB), the share of hydrocarbon sector in the GDP amounted to about 60 percent in the first quarter with a growth rate of 7.9 percent, while the share of non-hydrocarbon sector remained at 40 percent, witnessing a growth of 5.3 percent for the same period. And the overall revenues reached at about QR54bn and the overheads reached at QR44bn, with the surplus exceeding by QR9bn.

The sources said that the actions taken by the government to cope with rising prices during the last period significantly contributed to the decline in inflation, which became possible due to the most important decisions taken by the Ministry of Business and Trade in coordination with the Consumer Protection Department (CPD) to control the rising prices, as the CPD issued a long list of goods and services with a price-freeze.

It also pointed out that the availability of the supply of housing units has strongly contributed to the decline of inflation as housing prices play important role in determining the inflation.

source: The Peninsula

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