Qatar Trade
Balance Records Surplus of QAR 14.3 billion Last December
Qatari Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA) has issued its
preliminary report on the external trade for the month of December 2019.
The report included data on the exports (of local origin and re-export)
along-with imports. Following is a summary of the data published in the
PSA report:
Total Qatari exports (which included exports of local origin and
re-export) during December 2019 amounted nearly QAR 23.6 billion
reflecting a decline of 7.2% compared to December 2018 and an increase
of nearly 6.4% compared to November 2019.
On the other hand imports during the month was reduced by 2.7%
amounting QAR 9.3 billion compared to reduction of 4.0% over the
preceding month.
Consequently, the commodity trade balance, which represents the
difference between the total exports and the total
imports of commodities,
has achieved a surplus of QAR 14.3 billion during December 2019,
recording a decline by QAR 1.6 billion compared to the equivalent month
2018 (10.0%), and an increase by QAR 1.8 billion approximately over the
preceding month November (14.4%).
Compared to December 2018, the value of the exports of petroleum gas
and other hydro carbonic gases (representing Liquefied Natural Gas,
Condensates, Propane, Butane … etc.) declined by 10.1% to reach nearly
QAR 15.0 billion. However, the value of the petroleum oils and raw
bituminous mineral oils materials increased by 20.9% amounting roughly
QAR 4.1 billion, while the value of the exports of petroleum oils and
oils extracted from non-raw bituminous mineral materials reduced by
17.6% amounting nearly QAR 1.4 billion.
Japan has occupied the lead position among the destination countries
for Qatari exports during December 2019 by exportation value of nearly
QAR 5.0 billion representing 21.1% of the total Qatari exports, followed
by China by QAR 3.5 billion representing 14.7% and then South Korea by
QAR 3.4 billion representing 14.2%.
During month of December 2019, the category of “electric appliances
for telephones and telegraph wires including network transmitting
devices and its parts topped the commodities importation list, by a
total value of QAR 0.34 billion approximately, an increase of 56.2%.
Followed by automobile and vehicles designed basically for passengers’
transportation by QAR 0.32 billion, a decrease of 13.5%, followed by
ordinary aircrafts and helicopters parts” category, which amounted to
nearly QAR 0.31 billion, decrease of 10.5%.
On the country of origin-based-imports side, the United States
occupied the lead position during December 2019 by QAR 2.0 billion
importation representing 22.0% of Qatari total imports of commodities.
Followed by China by QAR 1.2 billion representing 12.5% and Germany by
QAR 0.5 billion representing 5.6% of the total importation.