QCB’s foreign exchange reserves at $49.3bn - The Peninsula #Qatar

QCB’s foreign exchange reserves at $49.3bn - The Peninsula Qatar:

Qatar Central Bank’s (QCB) foreign exchange reserves rose 1.8 percent month-on-month to reach $49.3bn in December 2018, equating to 8.8 months of import cover. Qatar’s bank asset growth was 1.8 percent y-o-y in January.

QNB monthly report noted yesterday credit growth was 3.1 percent y/y in January. Bank deposit growth was down 1.7 percent y/y in January. Private sector, public sector and non-resident deposits declined respectively 0.3 percent, 4.3 percent and 4.4 percent m/m in January. Broad money supply (M2) declined 6.5 percent y/y in December. Interbank rates remained stable.

Qatar’s real GDP growth has accelerated in Q3 on the back of a stabilisation in hydrocarbon output. Construction as well as finance & real estate led the way for a 4.3 percent growth in non-hydrocarbon GDP over Q3 2018. Industrial production was broadly flat at 0.3 percent in December. The real estate price index is signaling prices are stabilising. 5-star and 4-star hotel occupancy rates were stable at 56 percent and 62 percent respectively in December.