Economy

Gulf economic growth to slow to 3.5 pct: IMF

Economic growth in Arab states of the Gulf is likely to slow to 3.5 percent this year as oil revenues plummet due to a worsening global outlook, the International Monetary Fund said. "For the oil exporters, the decline in oil prices and OPEC production cuts are projected to reduce oil export receipts by almost 50 percent in 2009," Masood Ahmed, director of IMF's Middle East and Central Asia Department, said in a statement. "This implies a loss of government revenue to the tune of 300 billion dollars compared to 2008," he said. However, increased government spending could help bolster the Gulf region's economies, which are estimated to have grown by 6.8 percent in 2008, Ahmad said.

Developing countries to grow 3-5 pct -World Bank

Economies of developing countries are seen growing up to 5 percent in 2009, while industrialised countries will shrink due to the global financial crisis, the World Bank's chief economist said. The gross domestic product (GDP) for developing countries is expected to grow on average 3-5 percent this year, but will fall around 1 percent in industrialised countries.

Kingdom to pursue economic reforms to woo investment

Despite the global financial crisis, Saudi Arabia remains adamant in pursuing economic as well as structural reforms that promote privatization, and develop a business-friendly environment which will attract foreign and private investment. The Kingdom will face some challenges this year, largely due to the fall in crude oil prices and cut in its oil production in line with the decision of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). In addition, tighter and more expensive borrowing may lead to an overall slowdown in economic growth in 2009, the Jeddah-based Financial Transaction House (FTH) said in its latest Economic Insight: Saudi Arabia 2009 report.

Merrill Lynch: UAE money reserves sufficient to counter financial crisis

Leading financial management and advisory Merrill Lynch affirmed that the UAE economy is ready to face the challenges wrought by the global financial crisis by using the Gulf State’s massive liquid reserves. Independent international sources estimated the UAE to wield between $300 billion and $500 billion financial reserves accrued during the heady days of the third oil boom.

Qatar annual inflation falls to 13.2 pct in Q4

Annual inflation in Gulf oil and gas producer Qatar eased to 13.16 percent in the fourth quarter as cost pressures from rents, fuel and energy eased, official data showed. The rental index of the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas gained 13.7 percent to Dec. 31 compared with a year earlier, Qatar Statistics Authority data showed. That was down from an annual jump of 18.9 percent in the third quarter and 24.4 percent in the second quarter.

Egypt's inflation rate drops to 10-month low

Egypt's inflation rate was down to 14 percent in January on a year-on-year basis, as commodity prices ebbed worldwide, the country's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) said. Overall annual inflation rate was 14 percent in January, the lowest one since April, compared with 18.7 percent in December, it said. The urban inflation rate was down to 14.3 percent in the month and the rural rate was 13.5 percent, thanks to a continuing drop of food and beverage prices.

New business licences in Dubai rise slightly in fourth quarter

The Dubai Department of Economic Development (DED) has released statistics showing that issues of new business licences in Dubai were up by a marginal 3.3 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2008 over the same period in 2007. The overall number of licences issued in 2008 was 6 per cent higher than in 2007. By the end of last year, there were 134,379 businesses in operation in Dubai. In the first two weeks of this year, 429 new business licences have already been issued by the DED. In addition, 50 Intlaq licences were issued to UAE nationals to set up home-based businesses, a DED-led initiative. The news will come as some welcome respite for Dubai authorities following the widespread acceptance that the effects of the global economic crisis have begun to be felt here.

Riyadh counts on higher spending for growth

Saudi Arabia's budget for 2009 is generous on spending notwithstanding uncertainties related to the global credit crunch. Projected expenditures amount to $126 billion (Dh463 billion), up by 15 per cent versus the originally planned figure for fiscal year 2008. The actual spending in fiscal 2008, however, increased nearly 25 per cent on the back of firm oil prices in the half of the year. Revenues for fiscal year 2009 amount to $109 billion, merely $11 billion less than the figure originally planned for 2008. It was expected that the authorities would sharply lower projected income levels due to the extraordinary drop in oil prices from a record $147 per barrel in June 2008 to around $40 per barrel lately.