Qatar and the US yesterday explored options to further enhance bilateral trade and industrial co-operation. In this regard, HE the Minister of Commerce and Industry Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari received the US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, who is currently on visit in Doha.
Discussions touched on the promotion of joint co-operation, particularly in the trade, investment and industrial fields and the prospects of bolstering bilateral trade in light of the economic potential of both countries.
Qatar-US bilateral trade reached QR26.4bn in 2018, ranking the US as Qatar’s fifth largest trade partner and top source of imports, accounting for 6.26% of total trade.
According to the Planning and Statistics Authority, in September this year, imports from the US stood at QR1.18bn, which constituted a share of 16% of the total imports.
More than 753 American companies and representative offices are currently operating in Qatar. These include 572 joint Qatari-US companies, 108 representative offices for US firms, 10 entities that are fully owned by the US citizens, and 63 firms operating under the umbrella of the Qatar Financial Centre.
Their discussions also touched on the latest developments that the Qatari economy witnessed over the past years, the investment opportunities that Qatar offers across various sectors and the legislations that the state enacted, including the law on regulating the investment of non-Qatari capital in economic activity, as well as initiatives aimed at supporting the private sector, attracting foreign direct investment and encouraging US companies to invest in Qatar.
The two sides discussed the role of US companies in implementing Qatar’s infrastructure projects as the country gears up to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.