Kuwait Economic and Strategic Outlook - March 2009 (PDF)

"Overall the year 2008 was good for Kuwaiti economy, though towards the end of the year the economy started to show the signs of slowdown. Real GDP continued its northward journey, estimated to have grown by around 4.8% in 2008. This growth came on the top of estimated 4.7% growth reported in the previous year. Rise in oil prices during 2008, especially during the first half, supported the GDP growth rate. Despite the significant fall in the oil prices in the second half of the year, average price of Kuwait Export Crude (KEC) was US$91.2 per barrel, up around 37.3% from 2007. Looking forward, we believe that Kuwait economy will be significantly impacted by economic crisis in 2009 and will post much lower growth for the year. For the year 2009, we expect the real GDP growth for Kuwait will be marginal. The oil prices, which are the significant drivers of Kuwait economy, are expected to remain in the range of US$40 to US$50 per barrel for the year 2009. However there are chances of higher oil prices in the second half of the current year if the global economic condition stabilizes. This will be helpful for Kuwait’s economy. Looking further forward to 2010, we believe that economic growth will be higher than 2009 as expect to see stabilization in the world economic order by then."