DUBAI, Apr 3 (Gulf News): Qatar's economic growth accelerated to 6.5 per cent in 2013 as a pick-up in construction and inflows of foreign workers ahead of the 2022 soccer World Cup offset easing oil production, data showed on Wednesday.
Analysts polled by Reuters in January had expected growth to slow to 5.7 per cent in 2013 and 5.5 per cent this year from 6.2 per cent in 2012.
An expansion of Qatar's gas facilities helped fuel breakneck growth averaging 17 per cent a year between 2006 and 2011, but the economy slowed in 2012 as the gas expansion ended and works on a raft of mega projects were slow to start.
Qatar is the world's top liquefied natural gas exporter.
Overall economic growth slowed in the final quarter of 2013 due to a sharp fall in the hydrocarbon sector, which accounts for more than half the $202 billion economy, but other sectors continued to expand rapidly.
"It's a very encouraging data set. The headline number may have weakened a little as hydrocarbon activity eased, but non-oil performance remained very strong and that's what is driving the economy forward," said Simon Williams, chief economist for the Middle East and North Africa at HSBC.
Non-oil gross domestic product jumped 10.4 per cent between October and December, slightly slower than a revised 10.9 per cent increase in the previous quarter, preliminary data from the Qatar Statistics Authority showed.
Qatar 2013 GDP beats forecasts
FE Team | Published: April 04, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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