Qatar

Late 2015 marked a major step forward for the world’s largest greenfield maritime development – Hamad Port, outside of Doha, where partial operations, including roll-on/roll-off, livestock and heavy equipment cargoes, began on December 24. 

December’s news that oil and gas prices were descending below their recent historic low inched up the pressure on the government budget. With many major new infrastructure projects rolling out or in the pipeline, too, alongside the ordinary demands of state, the hunt for alternative sources of financing is on in earnest.

Falling energy prices weighed on Qatar’s economic performance in 2015, with lower demand across key export markets and tougher competition producing a sharp drop in government revenues. However, double-digit growth for non-hydrocarbons helped foster economic momentum, expected to continue into 2016.

In recent years, Qatar has placed an increasing emphasis on the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the state’s overall development plans.

With a wave of new projects moving from the drawing board to the roll-out stage in Qatar’s Lusail City development, activity in the construction sector looks set to shift up a gear.

Given present jitters around the Gulf – as investors, businesses and governments face the prospect of sustained oil and gas price softening – international ratings agency S&P’s recent reaffirmation of Qatar’s high investment grades came as a welcome vote of confidence for many in Doha.