Qatar’s international reserves hit USD46.5b

12 Jan 2015

(MENAFN) According to a report by Qatar’s National Bank (QNB), Qatar’s international reserves registered an increase by USD6.9 billion in 2014 to reach an all-time high of USD46.5 billion by the end of November in comparison of USD39.6 billion at the end of November 2013, Gulf Times reported.

“The large increase reflects the strong current account surplus Qatar is enjoying, despite lower international oil prices. The import cover stood at 8.7 months at end- November 2014, well above the IMF-recommended level of three months for pegged exchange rates,” QNB said.

Qatar’s international reserves have been steadily increasing due to the country’s large current account surpluses, with expectations that the increase would continue in 2015 as well, despite the decline in Qatar’s petroleum production in November because of the plunge in oil prices and in oil demands.

Meanwhile, the country’s foreign merchandise trade balance registered a surplus of USD6.83 billion in November last year, a decrease by 17.9 percent year-on-year (y-o-y)compared with 013 partly as a result of lower international crude oil prices, which reduced total exports by 10.7 percent, while imports registered a 13.8 percent increase .