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Economic and political overview

Economic Overview

The Emirate’s economy is heavily concentrated in the gas industry, which represents two-thirds of its GDP and around 85% of export earnings. Following the 2022 FIFA World Cup, growth normalization persisted, with recent signs of strengthening activity. According to the IMF, real GDP is projected to gradually rise to 2% in 2024–25, driven by public investment, spillovers from the ongoing LNG expansion, and robust tourism. Over the medium term, growth is expected to accelerate to an average of 4.75%, fueled by a major LNG production boost and early benefits from reforms under the Third National Development Strategy (NDS3). With lower hydrocarbon prices, Qatar's current account and fiscal surpluses narrowed in 2023 to 17% and 5.5% of GDP, respectively, and moderated further in 2024. Over the medium term, despite a significant LNG production expansion, both surpluses are expected to persist but decline as a share of GDP due to falling hydrocarbon prices.

The overall fiscal surplus narrowed to 5.6% of GDP in 2023 and declined further in the first three quarters of 2024 as hydrocarbon revenues weakened. The 2024 budget had planned spending cuts of 2 percentage points of GDP from the 2023 outturn, mainly in capital expenditure, but fiscal data up to Q3 suggested milder cuts, closer to 1.5 percentage points of GDP. Despite this, the fiscal stance tightened, with the NHPB improving by around 0.75 percentage points of non-hydrocarbon GDP. Looking ahead, the 2025 budget outlines prudent spending plans amid a growth rebound, while the medium-term budget has been updated to align with NDS3 spending needs, maintaining a path of gradual fiscal consolidation (IMF data). Fitch Ratings expects Qatar's debt-to-GDP ratio to drop to around 43% by 2027, down from 49% in 2024 and a peak of 85% in 2020. This is based on the assumption that the government will refinance most of its upcoming external debt and pay down loans with a moderate budget surplus, excluding QIA investment income. How the government uses its fiscal surpluses in the future will determine the debt path going forward. Headline inflation dropped from 5% in 2022 to 3% in 2023 (average for the year) and slowed further to 1.2% by October 2024, as inflation in rent and recreation services eased. Producer prices and wage inflation stayed under control.

Qatar is overall a politically stable, rich country (it had one of the highest incomes per capita in the world in 2024 according to the IMF, estimated at USD 115,074 – PPP). It is estimated that 85% of the inhabitants are expatriates, whose rights are limited, despite the progress made with recent reforms. According to the World Bank, unemployment is almost null, representing 0.1% of the total labour force in 2023 (latest data available).

 
Main Indicators 2023 (E)2024 (E)2025 (E)2026 (E)2027 (E)
GDP (billions USD) 213.00221.41226.22242.14262.19
GDP (Constant Prices, Annual % Change) 1.21.51.95.87.9
GDP per Capita (USD) 69,54171,56872,76077,49283,493
General Government Gross Debt (in % of GDP) 43.341.240.238.936.8
Inflation Rate (%) 3.11.01.41.92.0
Current Account (billions USD) 36.4729.7430.0331.1837.18
Current Account (in % of GDP) 17.113.413.312.914.2

Source: IMF – World Economic Outlook Database , October 2021

Country Risk

See the country risk analysis provided by La Coface.

 

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Main Sectors of Industry

Qatar’s agricultural sector is almost non-existent due to the country’s climate and a lack of arable land. It is estimated to account for only 0.3% of GDP, employing 1.7% of the workforce (World Bank, latest data available). Although Qatar experiences a dry climate, it has embraced and implemented sustainable and intelligent technologies, such as automated irrigation systems, hydroponics, and aquaponics, to improve both the quality and quantity of fruits and vegetables. The country is self-sufficient in fresh poultry and dairy.

The economy of Qatar is based on the oil and natural gas sectors: proved natural gas reserves represent 11% of the world total and the third-largest in the world (these reserves are primarily located in the offshore North Gas Field, shared with Iran), while proved oil reserves exceed 25.2 billion barrels, which means the production could continue for over 50 years at current levels. Qatar's liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry has attracted tens of billions of dollars in foreign investment and made Qatar the world’s third-largest exporter of this commodity (after the U.S.). Being the country’s main economic engine and government revenue source, Qatar is highly dependent on the oil & gas sector, thus after the drop in commodity prices in recent years, it tried to diversify its economy, focusing mainly on manufacturing, construction, leading non-oil GDP to steadily rise to just over half the total. Overall, the industrial sector contributes 60.4% of GDP and 39.4% of employment, while manufacturing accounts for 9% of GDP (World Bank). According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Qatar's industrial sector experienced growth in 2024 with the establishment of over 1,400 new industrial firms. The total production value of registered and licensed companies in the country rose to QAR 2.634 trillion, reflecting a 3% increase from QAR 2.557 trillion in 2023.

The services sector is based mainly on financial services and is estimated to account for 45.3% of GDP, giving employment to 58.9% of the active population (World Bank). According to official data, approximately 8% of the country's GDP in 2022 came from the financial sector (USD 19 billion), as Qatari banks maintain profitability, supported by robust capitalization and sufficient liquidity. Tourism is also an important economic sector: the “Qatar Tourism Strategy 2030” set a target to attract over 6 million international visitors a year by 2030. In 2024, Qatar surpassed its annual visitor arrivals target of 4.79 million, reaching 5.08 million visitors. This growth was accompanied by outstanding performance in the hospitality sector, with nearly 10 million room nights recorded, exceeding the initial target of 8.8 million (data Qatar Tourism). The transportation and storage sector’s contribution to Qatar’s GDP as of 2022 stood at USD 9.9 billion (latest official data available).

 
Breakdown of Economic Activity By Sector Agriculture Industry Services
Employment By Sector (in % of Total Employment) 1.7 39.4 58.9
Value Added (in % of GDP) 0.3 60.4 45.3
Value Added (Annual % Change) 5.4 0.3 2.1

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

 
Monetary Indicators 20162017201820192020
Qatari Rial (QAR) - Average Annual Exchange Rate For 1 USD 3.643.643.643.603.64

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

 

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Foreign Trade

Qatar's trade policy is essentially focused on creating a modern and liberal economy. This is reflected in its promotion of investment (both domestic and foreign), its trade diversification programs at the regional and international levels and its membership in several organisations, such as the WTO. Trade represents 100% of the country's GDP (World Bank, latest data available). Mineral fuels, oils and distillation products represented over 85.6% of the country’s exports in 2023 (mainly natural gas, followed by crude and other oil products), while plastics accounted for 2.2%. In terms of product category, machinery and transport equipment constituted the main import (31.6% of the total), ahead of motor vehicles (22.7%), mineral fuels (16.4%), and aircrafts and their parts (15.2% - data PSA).

In 2023, Asia emerged as the primary destination for Qatar's exports. On a country level, the main export partners were China (19.6%), South Korea (13.2%), India (11.9%), Japan (7.6%), and Singapore (7.2%). Qatar’s leading suppliers were the United States (14.6%), China (14.5%), Italy (6.2%), India (5.7%), and Germany (5.1%). Qatar has very few trade barriers and relatively low customs duties. It has signed a number of free trade agreements, both bilaterally and via the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Benefiting from strong oil and gas revenues, Qatar's merchandise trade balance is structurally positive. In 2023, the country’s goods exports stood at USD 97.3 billion (from a record of over 130 billion one year earlier amid high global hydrocarbon prices), whereas imports totalled USD 30.9 billion (-7.6% y-o-y). Like many countries in the region, Qatar remains a net importer of services: imports reached USD 41.2 billion in 2023, while exports amounted to USD 30.1 billion. For the year, the trade surplus was estimated at 37% of GDP by the World Bank (the third highest worldwide). According to data from the Qatar Planning and Statistics Authority, in the first three quarters of 2024, the country exported QAR 260.3 billion worth of goods against QAR 94.9 billion in imports (-4.9% and +13% y-o-y, respectively).

 
Foreign Trade Values 20192020202120222023
Imports of Goods (million USD) 29,17825,83527,98533,47930,928
Exports of Goods (million USD) 72,93551,50487,203130,96497,365
Imports of Services (million USD) 35,41634,69834,34041,00041,199
Exports of Services (million USD) 19,11119,42918,34630,72830,173

Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Indicators 20192020202120222023
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) 90.090.092.8100.2n/a
Trade Balance (million USD) 41,58127,13760,33997,44568,306
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) 25,27611,86944,34587,17356,535
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) 1.9-8.9n/an/an/a
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) -2.2-1.5n/an/an/a
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 37.940.934.131.6n/a
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 52.249.158.768.6n/a

Source: World Bank ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Forecasts 20242025 (e)2026 (e)2027 (e)2028 (e)
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) -6.812.810.514.14.5
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) 1.51.95.87.93.5

Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data

Note: (e) Estimated Data

 
International Economic Cooperation
Member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

Member of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

The country is also part of the Greater Arab Free Trade Area(GAFTA), a pact of the Arab League entered into force in January 2005 which aims to form an Arabic free trade area. 

 

Main Partner Countries

Main Customers
(% of Exports)		 2023
China 19.7%
South Korea 12.6%
India 12.0%
Japan 8.0%
Singapore 7.2%
See More Countries 40.4%
Main Suppliers
(% of Imports)		 2023
United States 15.9%
China 14.5%
Italy 6.4%
India 5.6%
Germany 5.6%
See More Countries 51.9%

Source: Comtrade, Latest Available Data

 

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Political Outline

Current Political Leaders
Emir of Qatar: Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (since 25 June 2013)
Prime Minister: Muhammad bin Abd al-Rahman Al Thani (since 7 March 2023)
Next Election Dates
Shura Council: September 2025
Main Political Parties
The Qatari citizens enjoy limited political rights, and the formation of political parties is prohibited in the country. The only elections are for an advisory municipal council, and all candidates for municipal elections run as independents. Legislative elections for the Advisory Council are yet to be held.
Executive Power
The Emir of Qatar is the head of state and holds a hereditary title. Although Qatar is officially a constitutional monarchy, the Emir exercises executive authority and has the power to approve or reject legislation after consulting the Advisory Council (Majlis al-Shura). The Emir also appoints the Prime Minister and, based on the Prime Minister’s recommendations, approves the formation of the Council of Ministers.
Legislative Power
Qatar’s legal system combines civil law with Islamic law (Sharia), which is the main source of legislation. The Advisory Council (Majlis al-Shura) has the authority to draft and approve laws, but the Emir has the final say on all legislation. Until 2024, the Council consisted of 45 members, with 30 elected by direct, general secret ballot and 15 appointed by the Emir. However, following a constitutional referendum in late 2024, all Council members are now appointed by the Emir. The Council of Ministers can also propose draft laws and decrees for review by the Advisory Council. Sharia law is applied in areas such as family law, inheritance, and certain criminal cases.
 

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