Doha Bank expects exports from the Middle East in 2011 to be better than in 2010 on higher oil prices. Rising consumption from emerging markets and Japan could boost the GCC (Gulf Co-operation Council) trade in 2011, Group CEO R Seetharaman (
pictured) said.However the regional and global trade witness shocks mainly from European Union and Iran tensions could also impact the GCC trade in the medium to long term, Seetharaman said.Highlighting that the total trade between GCC and US increased to $89bn in 2011 (11 months) from $71.1bn in 2010, he said the US was exploring the development of a Trade and Investment Co-operation Agreement (TICA) with the GCC nations as a whole. The increase in bilateral trade was noted across all the GCC countries except Bahrain, Seetharaman said, adding “the exports from all GCC countries picked up in 2011 over 2010 which could be due to higher oil price.”About the trade between the UK and the Gulf countries, Seetharaman said a target has been set for trade between Qatar and UK to reach $12bn by 2015.Qatar supplied the UK with 15% of its total gas demand, which is expected to go up to 50% by 2025, he said, adding in April 2011, Qatargas signed an agreement with Centrica to deliver up to 2.4mn tonnes per annum of LNG from the Qatargas 4 project to the UK Isle of Grain Terminal for the next three years. Shell has invested a huge $20bn in Qatar over the past five years.Saudi Arabia is Britain’s biggest trading partner in the Middle East, with bilateral trade worth £15bn a year and Saudi investment in the UK worth more than £62bn.Observing that the bilateral trade between the GCC and China grew ten-fold to $100bn in the past decade, Seetharaman said Qatar exported 1.2mn tonnes of LNG to China in 2010.Trade between Qatar and China rose to $5.1bn (72% rise in 2011) mainly due to oil prices, he said.Japan’s trade with Qatar, its third largest trading partner among the GCC countries, jumped 30% to $22.84bn in 2010 despite a steep fall in its exports to Doha against the 25% growth in trade with the GCC, according to Seetharaman.On bilateral trends between Singapore and the GCC countries, he said in 2011, Qatar Telecom (Qtel) acquired a further 7.45% in Singapore’s second biggest telecom firm StarHub through its Asia Mobile Holdings joint venture with Singapore Technologies Telemedia. Asia Mobile now controls 56.55% of StarHub with Qtel holding 14.1%.Qatar National Hotels recently took ownership of the 125-year-old Raffles Hotel Singapore, he said.