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Qatar sukuk issuance was supported in the first half of the year by a $1.3bn issuance by the government, Moody's said in a report Monday.GCC sukuk issuance fell 33% to $29.8bn in the first half of 2023 compared with the year-earlier period, mostly reflecting a steep decline in Saudi Arabian sovereign volumes, Moody’s Investor Service noted.Despite the decline, however, the kingdom remained the leading contributor to GCC issuance activity in the first half of the year, with around 50% of total volume, it said.Oman was the only GCC country not to register any issuance activity during the period.Supportive hydrocarbon prices continued to strengthen the fiscal balances of hydrocarbon- exporting GCC sovereigns and will translate into budget surpluses this year, considerably reducing the need to issue sukuk.Unfavourable financing conditions and increased market volatility also reduced opportunities for sovereign actors to refinance debt or to prefinance expected borrowing needs.Long-term issuance by GCC corporate and financial institutions during the period followed an opposite trajectory to regional sovereign issuance, Moody’s said.Long-term volumes from corporates and banks rose threefold to a combined $12.6bn (H1 2022: $2.9bn), partly offsetting the decline in sovereign volumes.Sustained economic growth and diversification agendas in GCC countries gave rise to increased issuance activity to support balance sheet growth.On the corporate side, cross-border issuance made up the bulk of activity, with $7.4bn issued in the GCC, almost three times the volume for 2022 as a whole.High demand for sukuk instruments and current scarcity in the market offered opportunities for private-sector actors to issue, Moody’s said.Globally, sukuk issuance fell 28% to $66bn in the first half of 2023 from $92bn a year earlier, largely reflecting lower volumes from major sovereign issuers, most notably Saudi Arabia.Moody’s expects global sukuk issuance to decline for a third consecutive year in 2023 after peaking at $205bn in 2020.“We anticipate issuance of between $150bn and $160bn for the year as a whole, down from $178bn in 2022. Lower volumes from key sovereign issuers directly stemming from ongoing improving fiscal positions explain most of the decline we anticipate for this year.“In the GCC, as well as Southeast Asia, robust commodity prices associated with sustained economic growth have translated into stronger fiscal positions and lower issuance needs,” Moody’s said.Lower sovereign volumes contrast with stronger activity on the part of private-sector issuers, which returned to the market in the first half of the year despite unfavourable market conditions.A significant increase in private-sector volumes was driven by companies completing postponed issuances or seeking to refinance upcoming maturities, as well as first-time issuers looking to diversify their funding sources.Increasing appetite for sustainable instruments, encouraged by GCC governments ahead of the COP28 summit, also pushed several corporates and financial institutions to issue green sukuk.“Overall, we remain positive on the long-term prospects for sukuk. These instruments offer access to the Gulf region, where significant financial reserves and solid economic prospects are attracting investors in increasing numbers.“As sukuk markets in core Islamic countries become more mature and economies continue to develop, we expect the sukuk market's growth prospects to remain solid,” Moody’s noted.

Qatar's economic activity could remain modest on expectedly steady hydrocarbon output, National Bank of Kuwait said in its report released Monday.NBK’s 2023 growth forecast for Qatar remains unchanged from the May estimate, at 2%.In its report, NBK noted Qatar’s economy expanded by 2.7% year-on-year (y-o-y) in first quarter (Q1, 2023), down from the “exceptional” World Cup-driven growth of 6.2% in Q4, 2022, and below the consensus forecast of 4.2%.The “slower” expansion was mostly on a marked deceleration in non-oil growth, which plunged to 1.9% y-o-y from 7% in the previous quarter, with the manufacturing (11%), motor vehicle repair (9.1%), transportation and storage (17%), and accommodation and food (17%) components expanding the most.Meanwhile, hydrocarbon sector growth eased to 4.1% from 4.8% previously, but remained the largest contributor to GDP (more than half).Looking forward, economic activity could remain modest on expectedly steady hydrocarbon output and as non-oil activity moderates post World Cup amid lower visitor numbers, softer credit growth, and higher interest rates; NBK said its 2023 growth forecast for Qatar remains unchanged from the May estimate, at 2% from 4.8% in 2022.The report also noted that Brent crude snapped a two-week losing streak on September 1, closing up at its highest level since last November at $88.6/barrel (+4.8% week over week) amid expectations of tighter supply.“All the indications are that Saudi Arabia will extend its voluntary 1mn barrels per day (bpd) production cut, in effect since July, into October, while Russia could also reduce its exports further after Russian deputy prime minister promised to unveil a new OPEC+ supply cut deal this week,” NBK said.In the US, commercial oil inventories fell for a third consecutive week (crude stocks have declined in five of the last six weeks), by 8mb in the week ending August 25, on higher domestic (refinery throughputs) and overseas demand (exports).“Prices were little changed this morning (September 4) in Asian trading,” NBK noted.

Qatar banking sector total assets declined 2% month-on-month (MoM) and (down 1.9% in 2023) in July to QR1.86tn, QNB Financial Services (QNBFS) has said in a report.The month also saw a decline in both loans and deposits with banks in Qatar.Both the public and private sectors pushed the overall credit lower. As deposits fell by 2.9% in July, the Loans to deposits ratio (LDR) increased to 134.1% compared to 131.5% in June this year.According to QNBFS, total assets drop in July was mainly due to a fall by 1.3% in domestic assets and 5.1% in foreign assets.Total assets are down by 1.9% in 2023, compared to a growth of 4.2% in 2022. Assets grew by an average 6.9% over the past five years (2018-2022)Liquid assets to total assets was at 30.7% in July, compared to 31.1% in June, QNBFS noted.Loans went down 0.9% during July to QR1.24tn, the report said.Loans slide in July was mainly due to a decline by 1.9% in the public sector and 0.5% in the private sector.Loans are lower by 0.9% in 2023, compared to a growth of 3.3% in 2022.Loans grew by an average 6.7% over the past five years (2018-2022), QNBFS said.Loan provisions to gross loans stood at 3.8% for both June and July this year.Total public sector loans dropped by 1.9% MoM (-3.8% in 2023). The semi-government institutions’ segment fell by 27.7% MoM (-0.2% in 2023), while the government segment (represents 28% of public sector loans) moved lower by 2.9% MoM (-14.1% in 2023). However, the government institutions’ segment (represents 67% of public sector loans) loan book increased by 1.3% MoM (+1.0% in 2023).QNBFS report reveal Qatar bank deposits fell by 2.9% during July to QR927.8bn.Deposits drop in July was mainly due to a fall by 7.1% in public sector deposits.Deposits have declined by 7.1% in 2023, compared to a growth of 2.6% in 2022.Deposits grew by an average 4% over the past five years (2018-2022), QNBFS said.Loans to deposits ratio moved up during the month to 134.1% in July.Looking at segment details, the government segment (represents 25% of public sector deposits) mainly dragged down the public sector with a fall by 15.5% MoM (-27.2% in 2023), while the government institutions’ segment (represents 58% of public sector deposits) dropped by 5.1% MoM (-10.1% in 2023).However, the semi-government institutions’ segment moved up by 1% MoM (3.3% in 2023) in July.An analyst said, “The banking sector deposits dropped significantly by 2.9% in July 2023 and can be attributed in part to the government’s debt redemption plan for both external and domestic debt.“Government deposits have declined by 27.2% for the year 2023 as at July 2023 and is likely to have been utilised in repaying debt, with the recently released public budget statement for the second quarter 2023 stating that QR12.5bn in redemption of external bonds and loans were made during the second quarter (Q2) of 2023.”

Origin-Destination (O-D) passenger traffic growth in Qatar was second best in the Middle East in the second quarter of the year, reveals a study by International Air Transport Association.In the second quarter (Q2) of the year, Qatar recorded an O-D growth of 5.1% (compared to same period in 2019), which was second only to the UAE in the entire Middle East region, IATA noted.The UAE led with an impressive 17.2% growth in O-D passenger traffic, compared to the same period in 2019, it said.Passenger traffic growth generally varied among the countries in the region, with the strongest performances seen in the UAE, Qatar, and Jordan.While Iran’s O-D passenger traffic remained 34.4% below pre-Covid levels, other countries also exhibited subdued growth in the second quarter compared to the previous period.This, IATA noted, was primarily due to the timing of Ramadan in 2023 compared to 2019.The passenger traffic recovery has been strong for Middle East carriers with 31.4% year-on-year (YoY) in the second quarter of 2023. The region’s airlines saw their revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs) reach within 0.9% of their Q2, 2019 levels.The Middle East outperformed the global recovery in RPKs, which reached 93.7% (within 6.3%) of pre-covid levels for the quarter. Since most of the passenger traffic for the Middle East is international, total RPKs followed similar growth trends and recovery rates as international RPKs.Ticket sales for the region have outperformed the global average and continue to trend upward, indicating sustained passenger demand, IATA said.Local holiday shifts in the region caused some fluctuations but the overall trend remains positive, it said.Although the annual growth in available seat kilometers (ASKs) was outpaced by the growth in RPKs, capacity still increased by 24.6% compared to the same period last year.As a result of the slower capacity growth, the passenger load factor for the region increased by 4.1 percentage points compared to the same period last year.Cargo activity: Cargo activity for Middle East airlines decreased in the second quarter of 2023 by 3.1% compared to the same period last year. This was still an improvement relative to the 8.1% YoY drop in the first quarter of 2023.Compared to 2019, second quarter cargo activity was flat. Middle East carriers have demonstrated better cargo activity in the second quarter compared to the global activity, which was 5% and 4.8% below 2022 and 2019 levels, respectively.Aircraft deliveries: Aircraft deliveries in the Middle East have maintained an upward trend since the lows of 2020, IATA pointed out.Deliveries for 2023, including 42 planes that are scheduled to be received by the end of the year, are set to increase by nearly 50% over 2022 numbers.With 90 aircraft in total for 2023, Middle East aircraft deliveries are set to recover to their 2019 levels.This region has also seen a shift in deliveries from predominantly widebody jets in 2019 to narrowbodies since 2020.The scheduled deliveries for 2023 indicate growth in both types of jet aircraft, with narrowbodies still accounting for most of the deliveries in the region, IATA noted.

Qatar’s budget generated a surplus of QR10bn in the second quarter (Q2) of the year with total revenue amounting to QR68.4bn and total expenditure QR58.4bn, the Ministry of Finance said on Thursday.“The surplus will be directed according to the state’s targeted financial policies, which are reducing public debt, raising the reserves of the Qatar Central Bank, and enhancing the savings of future generations through the Qatar Investment Authority,” the Ministry noted.Oil price averaged $77.7 per barrel during the quarter, the Ministry said in its ‘Statement of the State’s General Budget, Second Quarter 2023’.“Qatar's revenue continued to outperform the State budget projections, as oil prices remained higher than the conservative assumption of $65 per barrel outlined in the budget.“On the other hand, total expenditure during the second quarter of 2023 reached QR58.4bn, recording an increase of 19.3% compared to the previous quarter,” the Ministry of Finance said.Public debt: As of June 30, 2023, a 3.5% decrease was recorded in the overall public debt level compared to Q1-2023, bringing the total public debt to QR343.6bn, the Ministry of Finance said.“The reduction is a consequence of the successful execution of the scheduled debt redemption plan for both external and domestic debt. In the second quarter of 2023, a total payment of QR12.5bn was made towards the redemption of external bonds and loans,” the Ministry of Finance said.Domestic debt: Total domestic public debt stood at QR160.4bn, as of June 30 this year, which represents 46.7% of the overall public debt.External debt: Total external public debt at the end of June 2023 stood at QR183.2bn, which represents 53.3% of the total public debt.Debt to GDP ratio: Total public debt accounted for 39.8% of GDP in June this year, compared with 41.2% in the previous quarter.Citing data from the Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA), Ministry of Finance said real GDP in Q1,2023 increased by 2.7% compared to Q1,2022.The hydrocarbon sector recorded a growth of 4.1% and the non-hydrocarbon sector recorded a growth of 1.9% in Q1,2023 compared to the same period last year.The non-hydrocarbon sector returned to its normal performance in Q1,2023 following significant growth in the fourth quarter of 2022, which was primarily attributed to the World Cup-related initiatives. However, the sector maintained a robust level due to the positive momentum generated by the football mega event.Qatar experienced a substantial increase in tourist arrivals after the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.In Q1,2023, the country recorded a 268% rise in international visitors compared to the same period in the previous year, with a total of 1.16mn visitors.The influx of tourists provided support to various domestic sectors. Accommodation and food service activities stood out, showing an impressive 17.3% increase in Q1,2023 compared to the same period in 2022.The transportation and storage sector also continued to grow, with a 16.8% rise in Q1,2023 compared to the previous year.According to Hamad International Airport (HIA), the airport maintained its “remarkable” performance, witnessing a 44.5% increase in passenger traffic and an 18.7% increase in aircraft movements during the first quarter of 2023, as compared to the same period in the previous year.The manufacturing sector experienced a 10.8% growth in Q1-2023 compared to Q1,2022, driven mainly by increased production of refined petroleum products, food, beverages, and other goods, Ministry of Finance said.

Total public spending during the second quarter of the year amounted to about QR58.4bn, representing an increase of 19.3% compared to the previous quarter, Ministry of Finance announced on Thursday.Newly approved projects during the second quarter (Q2) totalled QR3.9bn, Ministry of Finance said and noted that “major capital expenditure” increased by 29.1% compared to the previous quarter due to completion of several infrastructure projects and the newly awarded projects, in addition to the disbursement of compensation to contractors.Total expenditure for the second quarter amounted to QR58.4bn, representing an increase of 19.3% compared to the previous quarter. Total expenditure for Q2, 2023 accounted for 29.3% of the 2023 budget, the Ministry of Finance noted.Total revenue for the second quarter amounted to QR68.4bn, which Ministry of Finance said represents a decline of 20.2% compared to the same period last year.Total revenue for the second quarter accounted for 30% of the 2023 budget.The oil and gas revenue amounted to QR40.3bn, which represents a decline of 30.9% compared to the same period last year.The decrease in hydrocarbon revenue during the current period is attributed to lower oil prices compared to the same period last year. The average oil price per barrel declined in Q2, 2023 by 30.5% compared to the same quarter last year.“This decline is primarily driven by concerns about a potential global economic slowdown,” Ministry of Finance said.Non-oil revenue for Q2, 2023 totalled QR28.2bn, which it said represents an increase of 2.2% compared to the same period last year.In Q2, 2023, a significant portion of the budgeted non-oil revenue for 2023 was realised, primarily due to the timing of corporate income tax collection.The revenue achieved in Q2,2023 aligned closely with the target, resulting in the Ministry of Finance maintaining its estimate of total 2023 non-oil revenue at QR42bn.In terms of country’s expenditure, the Ministry of Finance said “Current expenditure” increased by 14% compared to the previous quarter.This increase, it said was a result of the rise of interest rates on loans, in addition to the current expenses of some of the Qatar’s projects like the one on food security.Salaries and wages increased by 12.2% in Q2 compared to the previous quarter. This is mainly due to new employments in Q2-2023, in addition to advance payments and annual bonuses coinciding with the holiday season.Qatari projects that were financially approved (under major Capex) during the second quarter included infrastructure and roads (QR224.1mn), sewer and drainage (QR300mn), parks and green areas (QR948mn) and miscellaneous works (QR2.5bn).

Africa accounts for 18% of the global population, but just 2.1% of air transport activities including cargo trade..text-box { float:left; width:250px; padding:1px; border:1pt white; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 15px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 20px;}@media only screen and (max-width: 767px) {.text-box {width: 30%;}}**media[71424]**Infrastructure constraints, high costs, lack of connectivity, regulatory impediments, slow adoption of global standards and skills shortages affect the customer experience and are all contributory factors to African airlines’ viability and sustainability. The continent’s carriers suffered cumulative losses of $3.5bn in two years from 2020, decimated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates further losses of $213mn in 2023.Obviously, a huge gap exists between Africa’s demand and supply. IATA points out that the continent can benefit from the connectivity, jobs and growth that aviation enables if that gap is closed.Recently, the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) announced that it is joining ‘Focus Africa’, an IATA initiative, which is aimed at strengthening aviation’s contribution to Africa’s economic and social development and improve connectivity, safety and reliability for passengers and shippers.This initiative will align private and public stakeholders to deliver measurable progress in six areas.Under Focus Africa, private and public stakeholders are committed to delivering measurable improvements in six critical areas - safety, infrastructure, connectivity, finance and distribution, sustainability, and skills development."AFRAA strengthens the Focus Africa coalition as we work to increase aviation’s role in Africa’s development. This has enormous promise. The continent is home to the world’s most rapidly growing population but accounts for just 2% of air passenger and cargo transport activity.“The road to realising aviation’s potential will be long. But with the strong partnerships committed to Focus Africa, we can, and we will realise the needed change,” said Kamil al-Awadhi, IATA’s regional vice-president (Africa and the Middle East).“The tasks for Focus Africa are not new. Work is already underway as part of the work of IATA and other stakeholders in Africa. But after the financial trauma that the pandemic brought to African aviation, we are at a unique time of rebuilding. By launching Focus Africa now, we can ensure that the recovery from Covid-19 moves aviation to an even better place than we were in 2019,” al-Awadhi added.Sustainably connecting the African continent internally and to global markets with air transport is critical for bringing people together and creating economic and social development opportunities.It will also support the realisation of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) for Africa of lifting 50mn people out of poverty by 2030.In particular, trade and tourism rely on aviation and have immense unrealised potential to create jobs, alleviate poverty, and generate prosperity across the continent.Africa has a solid foundation to support the case for improving aviation’s contribution to its development. Pre-Covid aviation supported 7.7mn jobs and $63bn in economic activity in Africa. Projections are for demand to triple over the next two decades.In Africa, IATA has identified six critical focus areas that will make a positive difference for the continent’s aviation in particular and economy in general."The limiting factors on Africa’s aviation sector are fixable. The potential for growth is clear. And the economic boost that a more successful African aviation sector will deliver has been witnessed in many economies already. With Focus Africa, stakeholders are uniting to deliver on six critical focus areas that will make a positive difference. We will measure success and need to hold each other accountable for the results,” noted Willie Walsh, IATA director general.Undoubtedly, Africa continues the path to recovery from the Covid-19 crisis. Air cargo is 31.4% over 2019 levels and air travel is 93% of 2019 levels. Full recovery for air travel is expected in 2024.

Qatari companies have warmed up to sustainability as the globe simmers, QNB Financial Services said and noted MSCI has rated the country’s sovereign ahead of regional peers in ESG.Moreover, QNB's high rating (#1 in Qatar/top-2 among GCC banks), augmented by its sizeable weight in the QSE, puts Qatar front and centre on the sustainability map, QNBFS noted.Qatar envisions transforming into an advanced society by 2030 with a focus on four key pillars: human, social, economic and the environment.QNBFS said, arguably three of these pillars have ESG connotations. For example, for ‘E’, an environmental sector strategy (ESS) was created to support Qatar National Vision 2030, premised on the need to sustain the environment for the present and future generations.That culminated in the establishment of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in 2021 as Qatar set a bold goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2030, tying this commitment into the larger global climate goals and the Paris Agreement.More than 90 countries have at least pledged a timeframe within which they hope to achieve net-zero or carbon neutral status – 2050 is the target year set by most countries, although some pledges are as late as 2070.Over 60% of Middle Eastern respondents in the 2023 PwC survey on ESG affirmed their companies have incorporated ESG issues into their strategies – Qatari companies formed the third-largest group among these respondents.In December 2016, the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) issued guidance on ESG reporting and launched a web platform (QSE Sustainability Platform), which allows listed companies to record their progress in adopting sustainability.It is a detailed scorecard that queries data such as energy used per employee, average hours of training per employee and percentage of independent directors. The idea was to phase in mandatory ESG reporting gradually.QSE’s ESG scores are based on percentage-of-completion of these disclosures, rather than actually scoring these disclosures. It is somewhat surprising that this voluntary self-reporting databank has low compliance levels.“We do note that QNB Group has been noticeably persistently fully-compliant (100%). Comparatively, the overall average compliance ratio is 26% over the past four years. The median firm has 0% compliance ratio – only 19 companies have a >0% compliance ratio since 2019,” QNBFS said.The regulatory framework is evolving to integrate ESG and notable developments include: the 2015 Companies Law and its 2021 Amendment, QFMA Corporate Governance Codes (2014 and 2016), QSE ESG Guidelines (2016), and various labour reforms as recently as 2022.In late 2022, QFMA published a draft amendment to its Governance Code, to bring Qatar’s publicly-listed companies more in line with international best practices, QNBFS said.

GCC petrochemical and chemical producers have reduced hazardous waste generation to a record low of 0.0011 units per tonne of production in 2022, says GPCA in a report.This achievement represents a “remarkable” 42% decrease compared to the previous year, highlighting the industry’s dedication to sustainable practices and waste management, noted Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association, which represents the downstream hydrocarbon industry in the GCC region.In addition, the report revealed a 61% reduction of hazardous waste generation when compared to the average value recorded over the previous nine years (2013-2021).However, in 2022 non-hazardous waste generation increased by 10% compared to the previous year and dropped by 40% when compared to the rate between 2013 and 2021.Carbon dioxide (CO2) intensity saw a “remarkable” 12% decrease between 2022 and 2021, and an “impressive” 24% decrease compared to the previous nine-year average.GHG emissions also “dropped” by 11% compared to 2021, signalling the industry’s commitment to net-zero.In 2022, process safety incidents dropped by 31% year-on-year (YoY) and by an “impressive” 40% over the past nine-year average, GPCA said.Last year, GPCA members achieved an “impressive” 17% reduction in combined Total Recordable Incidents (TRIs), encompassing incidents involving both employees and contractors.This accomplishment was measured against the average TRIR (Total Recordable Incident Rate) over the preceding nine years.A comparison between 2022 and 2021 reveals a 3% improvement, despite a simultaneous 3% increase in total man-hours.Having identified this as an area of concern, GPCA has set up a new task force under the Responsible Care Committee – the Contractor Safety Task Force (CSTF) – to enhance contractors’ safety culture and behaviour among GPCA’s Responsible Care members.Recently, GPCA released its ‘Responsible Care 2022 Performance Metrics’ report under the theme ‘Navigating a year of progress and sustainability’.The report is based upon some 999 data entries from as many as 39 companies collected and analysed from a set of 26 metrics.The individual performance metrics are divided in five key categories: occupational health and safety, process safety, emissions and discharges, resource utilisation, and distribution and products.

The Qatari authorities are taking steps to limit local banks’ reliance on short-term non-resident deposits and external funding, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has said in a report.The Qatari banking sector is “well regulated”, EIU said and noted “strong prudential indicators insulate local banks from a deterioration” in asset quality. Banks’ profitability has been “bolstered” by higher interest rates and a larger net interest margin.Since the authorities are taking steps to limit Qatari banks’ reliance on short-term non-resident deposits and external funding, EIU noted that it will address the large negative net foreign asset position of Qatar's banks.According to EIU, the riyal's peg to the dollar will continue to be backed by healthy foreign reserves and the huge assets of the Qatar Investment Authority (the sovereign wealth fund), estimated at about $475bn.As in the case of Qatari banking sector, EIU has assigned ‘BBB’ rating for the local currency. The rating, it said, is supported by strong international demand for Qatar's hydrocarbons exports, a large current-account surplus and a restrictive monetary policy stance.Qatar's sovereign credit strengths are large fiscal and current-account surpluses, which are expected to limit borrowing, and huge external assets. The country’s public debt has fallen sharply over the past two years.High energy prices, though falling below their recent peaks, will support a strong trade position in 2023-24 and ensure external liquidity is comfortable,” EIU said, assigning sovereign risk rating at ‘A’.The economic structure risk is BB-rated, it said. Qatar's over-reliance on hydrocarbons exports remains a vulnerability, exposing the country to global energy price movements.In its previous update, EIU noted Qatar's overall business environment score improved, from 6.60 for the historical period (2017-21) to 7.74 for the forecast period (2022-26).This has helped Qatar's global ranking to improve by 15 places, from 36th to 21st, although it retains its regional ranking, in third place. The largest improvements in terms of scores are in the infrastructure and market opportunities categories, it said.“Qatar's fairly open foreign investment regime, open trading relationships with regional partners and sophisticated capital markets will remain strong aspects of its business environment. The main shortcomings are in policy towards private enterprise and competition and in access to financing for small and medium-sized enterprises; these are expected to improve in the medium term,” EIU said.

American multinational corporation Boeing sees Qatar as a very important and strategic market, where it is present in all sectors of aerospace in the country.“We are proud to be a company that continues to contribute towards Qatar’s growth, especially in terms of Qatar National Vision 2030 and look forward to supporting the country’s ambitious plans,” Boeing President in the Middle East, Turkiye and Africa Kuljit Ghata-Aura said in an exclusive interview with Gulf Times in Doha.Kuljit noted Boeing and Qatar have been partners since 2006, when Qatar Airways placed its first order for Boeing aircraft.Besides two great customers in Qatar on the defence and commercial side – Qatari Amiri Air Force and Qatar Airways, Boeing collaborates with education and government institutions in Qatar on a range of initiatives that promote STEM education and entrepreneurship, he pointed out.He said, “Qatar’s Ministry of Economy and Commerce is one of our partners in the process through Invest Qatar. That relationship has strengthened over the last few months.”“We are proud to have been part of Qatar Airways’ success story. Since our partnership began, Qatar Airways has made landmark orders of Boeing 777s and 787 Dreamliners. These new airplanes will support Qatar Airways as it expands its passenger and cargo capacity. Boeing is also supporting Qatar Airways Cargo in developing ‘connected cargo’ solutions to enable greater operational efficiency,” Kuljit said.Boeing provides support to the Qatar Amiri Air Force by facilitating iconic platforms such as the F-15 fighter, the C-17 Globemaster transport airplane and the AH64 – Apache helicopter – all of which have been utilised to protect Qatar’s air, land and sea borders and have also been deployed to conduct humanitarian missions across the globe.During his brief visit to Doha recently, Kuljit spoke to Gulf Times about Boeing’s community engagement in Qatar.

Boeing has a “very significant” growing commercial customer in Qatar Airways that is going to be the launch customer of some of its “newest and most innovative” products, noted company’s president in the Middle East, Turkiye and Africa, Kuljit Ghata-Aura.“We are proud to have been part of Qatar Airways’ success story. Since our partnership began (in 2006), Qatar Airways has made landmark orders of Boeing 777s, 777 Freighters, 777Xs, 737 MAXs, 787 Dreamliners and 747-8 Freighters.“As the launch customer of the new 777-8F, we recently announced two very significant deals for 74 777X passenger and freighter airplanes, and up to 50 737-10 passenger airplanes. In April, Qatar Airways took delivery of its first 737-8 airplane,” Kuljit said in an exclusive interview with Gulf Times in Doha.Currently, he noted, Qatar Airways operates more than 130 Boeing airplanes: three 737-8s; 89 777s, including 27 777 freighters; 41 787s; three 747 Boeing Business Jets and two 747-8 freighters.Kuljit noted Qatar Airways has more than 120 Boeing airplanes on order books, which include 74 777Xs; 19 787-9s; two 777 freighters, 25 737-10s and six 737-8s.In 2013, Qatar Airways ordered 60 777X new widebody airplanes. In January 2022, Qatar Airways expanded its commitment to the 777X family by becoming the launch customer for the newest 777-8 freighter, with a confirmed order of some 34 airplanes and options for an additional 16 freighters.In July 2022, Qatar’s national carrier committed to up to 50 Boeing 737-10s with a firm order for 25 airplanes and options for 25 more.In April this year, Qatar Airways took delivery of its first 737-8, the first Boeing single-aisle airplane in the airline’s fleet.“These new airplanes will support Qatar Airways as it expands its passenger and cargo capacity. Boeing is also supporting Qatar Airways Cargo in developing ‘connected cargo’ solutions to enable greater operational efficiency with a focus on the 777-8 freighter,” he said.During the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Kuljit noted a dedicated team of 60 professionals was deployed to Doha to support airline customers with everything they needed to ensure a safe and timely service for the tournament.He said Boeing provides support to the Qatar Amiri Air Force by facilitating iconic platforms such as the F-15QA (Qatar Advanced) fighters, the C-17 Globemaster transport airplanes and the AH-64 Apache.All of them have been utilised to protect Qatar’s air, land and sea borders and have been deployed to conduct humanitarian missions across the globe and surveillance missions in Qatar during large-scale events like the 2022 FIFA World Cup.The F-15QA fleet conducted 52 sorties and the AH-64 Apache accomplished 96 missions during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.Kuljit said Boeing works closely with the Qatar Amiri Air Force, providing training and sustainment for the C-17 fleet.Boeing is also providing spare parts, support and test equipment, maintenance support, performance-based logistics, training devices, and aircrew and maintenance training for Qatar’s fleet of the AH-64 Apache helicopters.In addition, Boeing is providing in-country spare parts, maintenance, training, programme management and logistics support for the F-15QA fighters.To ensure mission readiness and smooth support of all defence platforms, Boeing is growing its employee base in Qatar, he pointed out.On Boeing’s global production rates, he said, “On 737, we are transitioning production to 38 airplanes a month. As we move to the higher rate, we will continue to prioritise stability. We still plan to increase to 50 airplanes per month in the 2025/2026 timeframe.“On 767, the current rate is three a month, while on 777/777X – it is also three a month. We have said our plan is to go to four a month in the 2025-2026 timeframe.“On 787, we are producing at four a month and still plan to reach five a month by the year-end. We have said our plan is to get to 10/month by the 2025-2026 timeframe.”On supply chain issues impacting the airline industry, Kuljit noted, “At Boeing, we continue to focus on driving stability in our production system, including closely partnering with our suppliers to address challenges, meet our customer commitments and prepare for future rate increases. Our objective is unchanged: a healthy and stable production system.“There’s progress in many areas of the supply base, however we expect supply chain challenges to continue well into 2024. We continue to work through supply chain challenges on a case-by-case basis.“We regularly monitor our suppliers across the globe, including our sub-tier supply chain, to ensure their deliveries support our current and future airplane production needs. This includes a variety of different approaches, from top leadership engagements to daily communications to onsite and embedded teams, all ensuring alignment and stable, predicable execution.“We have also ramped up internal fabrication for surge capacity and increased inventory of select parts for risk protection,” he added.

Qatar's inflation is seen falling to 2.2% this year and 1.9% in 2024, Oxford Economics said in in an update.Inflation moderated to a two-year low of 2.5% year-on-year (y-o-y) in June, dragging down the second quarter (Q2) average to 3%, from 4.2% in Q1.Disinflation continued across most categories, but food and recreation and culture prices climbed, driving a 0.1% month-on-month (m-o-m) increase in the headline rate.“We expect inflation to ease further in the next few months and briefly turn negative in the fourth quarter,” Oxford Economics said.The researcher sees country's fiscal balance (relative to GDP) at 6.4% this year and 8.1% in 2024.Qatar’s current account (relative to GDP) has been forecast at 12.6% this year and 13.8% in 2024.The country’s real GDP growth has been forecast at 2.6% this year as well as next.Non-oil activity, Oxford Economics noted, is continuing to rise according to the PMI survey, ending Q2 strongly at 53.8 in June. Robust demand has been a key driver of the recovery in output and employment and has kept businesses optimistic, particularly in the manufacturing and services sectors.“We expect non-oil GDP growth to soften somewhat, slowing from 3.3% this year to 3.2% in 2024,” Oxford Economics said.In a constant battle between supply and demand, the price of Brent crude continues to fluctuate, faltering below $85pb as global concerns weigh on the oil sector. China's uncertain recovery, ongoing inflationary pressures, and interest rate hikes globally are dampening demand for oil, offsetting oil price gains from production cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia of 1mn and 500,000 barrels per day (bpd), respectively, in August.“Given the current uncertainty clouding oil prices, it is not out of the question for Saudi Arabia to roll out its cut into October. As inflationary pressures settle and central banks pause aggressive rate hikes, we expect a slight recovery in prices," Oxford Economics said. “We think the price of Brent crude will average $81.9 this year and expect demand will wane further alongside potential reversal of production cuts next year.”

The price of jet fuel has a significant impact on airfares, as it is one of the most substantial operating costs for airlines..text-box { float:left; width:250px; padding:1px; border:1pt white; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 15px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 20px;}@media only screen and (max-width: 767px) {.text-box {width: 30%;}}**media[68843]**Jet fuel is a major expense that directly influences an airline's profitability and pricing strategy and accounts for up to 20% of an airline’s operating expenses.Higher fuel costs jack up ticket prices, and conversely, airfare drops with lower fuel costs. A lower fuel burn-per–hour rate reduces the cost of flying an aircraft. The less it costs to fuel an aircraft, the more airlines can reduce ticket prices, obviously attracting more travellers.The global average jet fuel price last week was down 0.3% compared to the week before at $122.80/barrel, according to IATA.Jet fuel prices in Europe fell in line with the decline in oil prices. There was no shortage of imports from East of Suez even as the peak summer demand starts to taper.In the US, market volatility has increased amid supply concerns stemming from local refinery shutdowns.However, jet fuel prices in the Asian market firmed as it continued to find arbitrage demand from Europe and US, IATA noted in its fuel price monitor.There are perceptions that oil supply will tighten towards the end of the year.Analysts say many airlines around the world are reviewing their hedging strategies in view of the situation.Currently, there is a huge demand for jet fuel with the international travel and tourism industry continuing its recovery run to pre-pandemic levels.Global traffic at the end of the second quarter (Q2) of the current year was at 94.2% of pre-Covid levels.For the first half (H1) of 2023, total traffic was up 47.2% compared to the year-ago period. Such figures are broadly indicative of the industry's post-Covid recovery largely sustaining its momentum.When jet fuel prices rise, airlines often seek to pass on some of the increased costs to passengers by adjusting airfares.While airlines might not fully pass on the entire fuel cost increase to passengers, they do tend to reflect a portion of it in their ticket prices to help maintain financial viability.Airlines sometimes engage in fuel hedging, a financial strategy where they lock in fuel prices at a certain level for a specified period.Invariably, this strategy provides a degree of predictability in fuel costs, even if market prices fluctuate.If an airline has effective fuel hedging in place, analysts point out it might be able to mitigate the immediate impact of sudden fuel price spikes on airfares.The airline industry is highly competitive, and airfares are influenced by various factors beyond just fuel prices.Airlines need to consider their competitors' pricing strategies, market demand, and customer sensitivity to price changes. When fuel prices rise, airlines may be cautious about increasing ticket prices too much, fearing that this might drive passengers away to lower-cost alternatives.Passenger demand for air travel is often sensitive to changes in ticket prices. When fuel prices increase, airlines carefully assess the elasticity of demand – that is, how much demand will drop in response to higher prices.If demand is highly elastic, airlines might be more hesitant to raise prices significantly, as it could lead to a noticeable drop in the number of passengers.The price of jet fuel is a critical factor influencing the operating costs of airlines, which in turn impacts their pricing decisions. While airlines often pass on a portion of increased fuel costs to passengers, they must balance this with considerations like competition, demand elasticity, and broader economic conditions. As a result, the relationship between jet fuel prices and airfares is complex and varies based on a multitude of factors.

Qatar was the second top liquefied natural gas exporter globally and led GECF member LNG producers in July, a report has shown.In its latest monthly report, Doha-headquartered GECF noted global LNG exports rose sharply by 5.4% (1.71mn tonnes) y-o-y, reaching 33.6mn tonnes and a record high in July.Stronger LNG exports from non-GECF countries boosted global LNG exports and offset weaker exports from GECF member countries and LNG reloads.As such, the share of non-GECF countries in global LNG exports increased from 48.6% a year earlier to 51.7% last month.In contrast, the share of GECF member countries and reloads in global LNG exports fell from 50.7% and 0.7%, respectively, to 47.8% and 0.5%, respectively.Between January and July this year, cumulative global LNG exports expanded by 4.2% (9.60mn tonnes) y-o-y to reach 238.88mn tonnes.“In July, the US, Qatar and Australia were the top LNG exporting countries,” GECF noted.Last month, LNG exports from GECF member countries and observers declined for the second consecutive month.GECF countries’ LNG exports fell by 0.7% (0.11mn tonnes) y-o-y to 16.06mn tonnes.Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Malaysia, Nigeria, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago and the United Arab Emirates contributed to the decline and offset higher exports from Qatar, Algeria, Angola, Mozambique, Norway and Peru.From January to July this year, GECF countries’ cumulative LNG exports grew by 2.2% (2.13mn tonnes) y-o-y, totalling 99.93mn tonnes. The drop in LNG exports in Malaysia, Russia and Trinidad and Tobago was attributed to higher planned maintenance activity at the MLNG, Sakhalin 2 and Atlantic LNG facilities, respectively.In Egypt and Nigeria, lower feedgas availability led to a decline in LNG exports from both countries.Furthermore, an unplanned outage at the Das Island LNG facility drove the United Arab Emirates’ LNG exports lower.Conversely, lower planned maintenance at the Skikda, Angola and Peru LNG facilities supported higher LNG exports from Algeria, Angola and Peru.Higher feedgas availability also contributed to the increase in Algeria’s LNG exports.In Mozambique, the stronger LNG exports were supported by the continued ramp-up in LNG production at the Coral South FLNG facility.In July, gas and LNG spot prices in Europe and Asia reversed the previous month’s gains with overall bearish market fundamentals, GECF noted.The average Title Transfer Facility (TTF) spot gas prices in Europe stood at $9.56/MMBtu, marking an 8% decline compared to the previous month.Meanwhile, the average Northeast Asia (NEA) LNG spot prices experienced an increase of 8% m-o-m to reach $10.88/MMBtu. Global gas market fundamentals remain relatively weak due to tepid demand in both Europe and Asia, as well as high EU gas storage levels.However, increasing buying activity from LNG importers in South and Southeast Asia will support prices in the upcoming months, GECF noted.

Global inflation and slackening manufacturing output have had a toll on air cargo demand, which slumped by 3.4% in June, although it was the lowest decline in one and a half.text-box { float:left; width:250px; padding:1px; border:1pt white; margin-top: 10px; margin-right: 15px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 20px;}@media only screen and (max-width: 767px) {.text-box {width: 30%;}}**media[66504]**years.Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs), fell 3.4% in June compared to June 2022 (-3.7% for international operations), according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).For the half year, demand slid 8.1% compared to the January-June period of 2022 (-8.7% for international operations). However, demand in June was only 2.4% below June 2019 levels (pre-pandemic).Capacity, as measured by available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTKs), rose 9.7% compared to June 2022, which was a slower rate compared to the double-digit growth recorded between March and May.This reflects strategic capacity adjustments airlines are making amid a weakened demand environment. Capacity for the first half of 2023 was up 9.9% compared to a year ago. Capacity is now 3.7% above June 2019 (pre-pandemic) levels.Middle Eastern carriers posted a 0.5% increase in cargo volumes in June 2023 versus a year ago. This was a strong turnaround from the 2.9% year-over-year decline registered in May.Capacity rose 11.1% for the month.Both Middle East-Asia and Middle East-Europe route areas saw annual growth. For the first half of the year, cargo demand was down 5.6% compared to a year ago, with an 11.2% hike in capacity.Key factors influencing air cargo demand, IATA noted, include a decline in global manufacturing production and exports.In June, both manufacturing output Purchasing Managers Index or PMI (49.2) and new export orders PMI (47.1) were below the critical threshold represented by the 50 mark.Global cross-border trade decreased by 2.4% year-on-year in May, reflecting the cooling demand environment and challenging macroeconomic conditions.The difference between the annual growth rates of air cargo and the global goods trade narrowed to -2.6 percentage points in May, representing the smallest gap since January 2022.However, the gap still suggests that air cargo continues to suffer more than container cargo from the slowdown in global trade.Obviously, a decrease in manufacturing output will have a direct impact on air cargo demand, as air freight is often used for transporting raw materials, intermediate goods, and finished products between different stages of the manufacturing process.Inflation erodes consumers' purchasing power, leading to reduced spending on non-essential goods. This particularly affects the demand for high-end consumer products and electronics that are often transported via air cargo.Analysts say stubbornly high inflation in both developed and developing countries has prompted the most aggressive interest rate hike cycle in decades, causing financial conditions to tighten and exacerbating debt vulnerabilities. This continues to impact global trade, air cargo in particular.Reduced consumer spending, shifts in priorities for perishable goods, decreased business investments, disruptions in supply chains, and lower demand for manufacturing-related shipments all contribute to a decrease in air cargo demand.Undoubtedly, the combination of a global inflation crisis and declining manufacturing output lead to a complex interplay of factors affecting air cargo demand.“We remain hopeful that the difficult trading conditions for air cargo will moderate as inflation eases in major economies. This, in turn, could encourage the central banks to loosen the money supply, which could stimulate greater economic activity,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general.

Crude spot prices rose on average month-on-month (m-o-m) in July driven by higher futures prices and stronger physical crude supply/demand fundamentals, Opec said in a report.Robust buying in the spot market including for near-term loading volumes for July and August trading cycles, concurrent with higher refinery intakes in July and firm demand from Asian buyers supported spot prices, Opec’s August monthly report showed.The Opec Reference Basket (ORB) value averaged higher m-o-m in July. This came amid firm gains in related crude benchmarks and higher official selling prices (OSP) of all medium and heavy components exported to Asia, Europe and the US markets.In July, the ORB increased by $5.87, or 7.8%, to settle at $81.06/barrel.Crude oil futures prices bounced back in July from low levels recorded in June, as selling pressure in futures markets ceased and market sentiment turned optimistic about improving global oil market fundamentals in the second half of 2023.Moreover, the expectations that central banks were approaching the end of their monetary tightening cycles, the sharp decline of the US dollar in the first half of July and expectations of economic stimulus in China added to the positive sentiment in financial markets.The ICE Brent front-month averaged $5.18, or 6.9%, higher in July to stand at $80.16/barrel, and NYMEX WTI rose by $5.76, or 8.2%, to average $76.03/b.DME Oman crude oil futures prices increased m-o-m in July by $6.25, or 8.3%, to settle at $81.16/b.Hedge funds and other money managers recovered a large part of their combined futures and options net long positions in July, after significantly cutting their bullish positions in May and June, mirroring an improved market sentiment and a change in speculators' strategy, Opec noted.Money managers rush to cover short positions built in the previous month, which contributed to pushing oil futures prices higher. The rise of net long positions was mainly due to the large drop in short positions.The crude market structure strengthened in July on an improving supply/demand balance outlook and signs of easing supply overhang for prompt loading volumes amid robust demand from refiners.Higher global refinery intakes boosted purchases of crude for prompt loading volume.The large decline in US crude oil stocks last month contributed to a strengthening of the structure of NYMEX WTI with the nearest month-spreads flipping into backwardation from contango in June.The sharp rise in bullish positions in the futures markets added support to prompt-month prices compared to forward-month contracts.The prospect of a tighter sour market and sustained supply availability of light sweet crude, including from the US, led to the further narrowing of the spread between the value of sweet and sour crude in almost all regions, although they widened slightly in Asia.Further strengthening of high sulphur fuel oil supported the value of heavy sour crude, while a sharp drop in the value of naphtha cracks weighed on the value of light sweet crude, which resulted in further narrowing of the naphtha-HSFO (high-sulphur fuel oil) spread to deep discount, Opec said.

Qatar’s budget for the current fiscal is heading towards a surplus, probably higher than envisaged, as Qatari crude averaged $80 per barrel from January to July in place of the budgeted $65 per barrel for fiscal 2023. Earlier, the Ministry of Finance estimated the budget surplus at QR29bn for the entire 2023. Qatari crude (including Dukhan and Marine) averaged $83.61 per barrel in January this year, $83.52/b (February), $75.80/b (March), $84.59/b (April), $76.13/b (May), $75.94/b (June) and $80.45/b (July), according to QNBFS calculations based on Bloomberg Data. In January, Dukhan averaged $84.98/b, while Marine $82.23/b. Data for the following months are as follows: February: $84.19/b (Dukhan) and $82.84/b (Marine), March: $76.15/b (Dukhan) and $75.45/b (Marine), April: $84.76/b (Dukhan) and $84.41/b (Marine), May: $76.33/b (Dukhan) and $75.93/b (Marine), June: $75.94 (Dukhan) and $75.94 (Marine) and July: $80.35 (Dukhan) and $80.55 (Marine). In the first quarter (Q1) of this year, Qatar already generated budget surplus of QR19.7bn, the Ministry of Finance revealed in June. In its briefing on the actual data of Qatar's budget in Q1 of 2023, the ministry said the total revenues for the quarter amounted to QR68.6bn, of which QR63.4bn were oil and gas revenues, while non-oil revenues amounted to QR5.2bn. The total expenditures in the same quarter of 2023 amounted to QR48.9bn, of which QR15.6bn was spent on salaries and wages and QR17.3bn on current expenses, while secondary capital expenditures amounted to QR1bn and major capital expenditures amounted to QR15.1bn, the statement noted. While releasing Qatar's budget for the fiscal year 2023, HE the Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari had said the surplus would be directed towards paying off Qatar's public debt, supporting the reserves of Qatar Central Bank, and increasing the capital of the Qatar Investment Authority. He pointed out that an average oil price of $65 per barrel, on the basis of which the general budget for the year 2023 was built, is a conservative price adopted by the Ministry of Finance as part of its strategy to ensure the ability to allocate financial resources for existing commitments expected during the year, besides financing programmes and projects included in the national development strategy.