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Qatar

Almost a quarter of Qatar's population is under 25, adding to the need for more schools

Qatar’s rising population increases demand for schools

Qatar’s growing population is fuelling demand for new schools as investors seek to capitalise on double-digit returns. The Gulf state’s population grew from about 1.45 million in 2008 to roughly 2.9 million last year and is forecast to reach 3.2 million by the end of the decade. That translates into a need for an additional […]

QIA is looking to invest in Japan's real estate, manufacturing and semiconductor sectors

Qatari wealth fund targets expansion in Japan 

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the country’s sovereign wealth fund, is exploring new opportunities in Japan, according to a media report. “It’s a key market for us,” Abdulla Ali Al-Kuwari told Nikkei, a financial daily in Japan. The fund’s investments in Japan have “more than doubled” after it opened an office in Singapore in 2021, he […]

QatarEnergy CEO Saad Sherida Al Kaabi said the deal will strengthen its 50-year partnership with Japan's Idemitsu

QatarEnergy signs naphtha deal with Japanese refiner

QatarEnergy will supply six million tonnes of naphtha to Japan over the next 10 years starting in July. The state-backed gas producer has signed a supply deal with Idemitsu Kosan Company, a Japanese refining and petrochemicals company. Naphtha is a flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixture commonly used as a solvent. It can also be used in […]

Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, UAE minister of state for financial affairs, and Qatari finance minister Ahmed Al Kuwari sign the tax agreement

UAE and Qatar in deal to avoid double taxation 

The UAE and Qatar have signed an agreement to prevent double taxation and curb fiscal evasion of income taxes. The agreement will enhance financial, economic, and investment partnerships between the two nations, UAE minister of state for financial affairs Mohamed Al Hussaini said. The move will bolster coordination and cooperation in tax matters, open up […]

President Nicos Christodoulides and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at the ceremony to welcome the emir to Cyprus this week

Qatar explores gas, port and Gaza aid deals with Cyprus

Qatar is looking at investing in ports, banking and energy in Cyprus, including expanding its ExxonMobil partnership in oil and gas exploration, the Associated Press news agency reported. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar, visited the Mediterranean country this week and held talks on investment issues with Cypriot president Nikos Christodoulides. […]

Qatar Rwandair

South African Airways denies talks with Qatar Airways

South African Airways has denied it is talking to Qatar Airways about an equity injection, as observers suggest RwandAir is the Qatari carrier’s most likely target. Qatar Airways’ CEO Badr Mohammed Al Meer set rumours racing earlier this month when he revealed that the state-owned airline was “at the final stage of an equity investment” […]

QatarEnergy Brazil Petrobras FPSO

​QatarEnergy to help develop offshore oil project in Brazil

A consortium including the state-backed QatarEnergy has taken the final investment decision to develop the second phase of the Sépia oil and gas field, 200km off the coast of Brazil. The other partners alongside QatarEnergy are TotalEnergies of France, Petronas of Malaysia, the Netherland’s Petrogal Brazil, and Brazil’s Petrobras, the field operator. A contract was signed […]

Photography, Clothing, Glove Qatari origin urea will be supplied to the agricultural sectors of the US and other international markets

Qatar signs 15-year urea supply pact with US company

Qatar, the world’s second-largest exporter of urea, has signed a long-term urea supply agreement with US-based Koch Fertilizer.  The 15-year agreement, starting in July, will lead to the supply of up to 0.74 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of urea, state-backed QatarEnergy said in a statement. Locally manufactured urea will be supplied to the agricultural […]

The under-construction Golden Pass LNG facility in Texas

Builder of Qatar-Exxon LNG facility files for bankruptcy

Zachry Holdings, the lead contractor on the QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil Golden Pass LNG project in Texas, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Zachry Holding’s share of the $10 billion Golden Pass project is valued at $5.8 billion. The company said it is pursuing a “structured exit”. “Because we have been unable to find a […]

Lesha Bank's total assets under management increased to QAR6.4 billion, an 11 percent increase year on year

Qatari Islamic bank buys Kazakhstan’s Bereke Bank

Lesha Bank, a sharia-compliant bank in Qatar, has acquired Bereke Bank from Kazakhstan government-backed Baiterek Holding for QAR532 million ($146 million). The Qatar Stock Exchange-listed company said in a statement that the transaction is, however, subject to regulatory approvals. Last month the bank reported an all-time high quarterly net profit of QAR28.8 million in the first quarter of […]

Man looks out at Doha's skyline. Qatar's debt as a percentage of GDP is expected to be just over 37% in 2024

Qatar to use $549m budget surplus to reduce debt

Qatar recorded a budget surplus of QAR2 billion ($549 million) in the first quarter of 2024, its finance ministry has announced. The ministry said the surplus would be used to reduce public debt, according to the state-run Qatar News Agency. Total revenue was QAR53.4 billion ($14.7 billion) in Q1, down 22 percent year on year. […]

Tourists visit the tombs of the Nabatean civilisation in AlUla. Saudi Arabia's goal is for tourism to make up 10 percent of GDP by 2030

Affluent tourists around the globe on Saudi Arabia’s radar

Saudi Arabia will invest more than $800 billion in its main giga-projects by the next decade as part of a tourism expansion strategy focused on affluent tourists in China, India and Europe.  The kingdom’s tourism minister Ahmed Al-Khateeb, speaking at the Qatar Investment Forum, said: “We’re building and investing in major destinations like Neom, Red […]

Qatar Airways said it was not able to meet high post-Covid demand due to shortage of new aircraft

Qatar Airways urges Boeing and Airbus to address delays

The head of state-run Qatar Airways has urged Airbus and Boeing to address supply chain issues to prevent airlines from “bleeding”. “I know they are under so much pressure when it comes to the supply chain market,” Reuters reported, quoting Badr Mohammed Al Meer speech at the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha. Airbus and Boeing need to […]

Qatar LNG

Qatar bullish on LNG as it plans increased production

Qatar’s energy minister said he is bullish on global demand for liquefied natural gas and his country is likely to push its production levels beyond those already targeted for 2030. “Technical capability is going to be assessed, and if there is more [gas], we probably will do more,” Saad Sherida Al Kaabi said at the […]

RwandAir CEO Yvonne Manzi Makolo said in Doha: 'Addis is already a huge hub but Kigali will be an alternative regional hub, especially given the geographical position of Rwanda'

Qatar and Rwanda to open airport in ‘heart of Africa’ by 2028

Qatar Airways and RwandAir will open a major international airport in Rwanda’s capital Kigali by 2028, the airlines said this week. The Qatari flag carrier has also announced plans to take a stake in a southern African airline to cement its expansion plans on the continent.  RwandAir and Qatar Airways, which have a code-sharing agreement, […]

Prime minister of Qatar Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said GCC states need to coordinate their efforts in sectors such as AI

Qatar calls for greater GCC cooperation as it diversifies economy

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund will continue a policy of diversification, investing in Central Asia and Africa, but Gulf countries need to do more to unify their economic growth plans to face rising geopolitical risks, Qatar’s prime minister said on Tuesday.  “Our focus in terms of the sovereign wealth fund and investment continues following the strategy […]

Workers at a semiconductor plant in the Netherlands. Qatar's investment in France's Ardian comes as global demand for semiconductor chips is surging

QIA invests in French semiconductor fund Ardian

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the country’s sovereign wealth fund, has announced plans to make an anchor investment in Ardian Semiconductor, a new entity established by the French private equity firm Ardian.  The move underscores the Gulf state’s bet on the crucial role of semiconductors in powering digital and green transformations in key areas such as […]

QatarEnergy's farm-in agreement gives it a 40% interest in Egypt's Cairo and Masry offshore exploration blocks

QatarEnergy buys stake in Egypt exploration blocks 

State-run QatarEnergy has signed an agreement with US energy major ExxonMobil to acquire a stake in two exploration blocks off Egypt. The farm-in agreement gives QatarEnergy a 40 percent interest in each of the Cairo and Masry offshore concession agreements. The value of the deal was not given. ExxonMobil, the operator of the blocks, will retain […]

Saudi Arabia’s industry and mineral resources minister Bandar Al-Khorayef. The country is struggling to meet an FDI target of $100bn a year by 2030

Saudi industry minister tempts investors with funding incentives

Saudi Arabia’s ministry of investments and mineral resources is prepared to finance up to 75 percent of industrial projects in the country, as the kingdom tries to boost its low foreign direct investment (FDI) numbers.  Bandar Al-Khorayef, the minister of industry and mineral resourcespointed to well-developed infrastructure across 36 industrial cities, prefabricated factories ready to […]

Ooredoo added two million customers in Q1 2024, up four percent year on year, bringing its total customer base to 58.5 million

Qatar’s Ooredoo profit falls despite 4% rise in revenue

Qatari telecoms group Ooredoo reported a 5 percent year-on-year decline in net profit to QAR913 million ($250.7 million) in the first quarter of 2024  The topline rose 4 percent to nearly QAR6 billion during the three-month period, compared to QAR5.6 billion a year ago, driven by gains in Iraq, Algeria, Kuwait, Maldives and Tunisia. However, revenue […]