The Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics (MDPS) have released the quarterly sequence of accounts providing preliminary estimates of the National Income, Saving and also the expenditure components of GDP for the Second quarter of 2015 at current prices.
Quarterly Sequence of Accounts for the total economy of QatarThe Quarterly Sequence of Accounts (QSOA) for the total economy of Qatar provides a comprehensive picture of current economic developments in the country. The major macroeconomic variables like GDP, National Income, Savings etc. which are the balancing items of respective accounts are discussed in the following paragraphs. Table (1) presents the QSOA for the Q2, 2015 with a comparison to the estimates of Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015.
National Income
The quarterly estimates of Gross National Income (GNI), for the Q2, 2015 is placed at 150.81 Bn QR which shows a decrease of 17.2%, when compared to the GNI estimate of Q2, 2014 [182.09 Bn QR]. Compared to the previous quarter (Q1, 2015), estimate of 156.13 Bn QR, a decline of 3.4% in the GNI of this quarter has been recorded. Saving of the NationThe Gross National saving has been estimated at 77.15 Bn QR in Q2, 2015 as against 110.10 Bn QR registered in Q2, 2014, showing a Year-on-year (Y-o-Y) fall of 29.9%. Compared to the previous quarter (Q1, 2015), the gross saving has gone down by 4.2%. The gross saving ratio to nominal GDP in Q2, 2015 is placed at 50.4%. The comparative figures for Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015 are estimated to be 58.2% and 50.5%.
More details are available in Table (1). Towards the end of this table, some of the other key economic indicators, shown as a percentage of nominal GDP of the country, are also presented for analytical purposes.
Expenditure components of GDPThe estimates of the expenditure components of GDP namely: Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE), Government Final Consumption Expenditure (GFCE), Gross Capital Formation (GCF); Exports of Goods and Services (F.O.B); and Imports of Goods and services (F.O.B) for the Q2, 2015 along with the same for Q2, 2014 (for Y-o-Y comparison) and Q1, 2015 (for Q-o-Q comparison] are presented in the following paragraphs. Table (2) may also be referred.
Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE)The Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE) in Q2, 2015 has been placed at 31.61 QR as against 28.42 Bn QR estimated in Q2, 2014, showing an increase of 11.2%. Rising population and the price rise of consumer items in the country have led to this rise.
The share of HFCE in the nominal GDP, in Q2, 2015 is estimated at 20.7%. The corresponding figures for Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015 are 15.0% and 19.9% respectively.
Government Final Consumption Expenditure (GFCE)The Government Final Consumption Expenditure (GFCE) for Q2, 2015 has been estimated at 29.70 Bn QR as against 27.0 Bn QR recorded in Q2 of 2014, showing a Y-o-Y rise of 10.0%. This increase in Government spending is in line with the rise in production of public goods and services.
The percentage share of GFCE in nominal GDP during Q2, 2015 has been estimated at 19.4%. The corresponding shares for Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015 have been 14.3% and 18.3% respectively.
Gross Capital FormationThe Gross Capital Formation (GCF) has been estimated at 60.14 Bn QR in Q2 of 2015 as against 60.62 Bn QR in Q2, 2014, showing a marginal decline of 0.8%.
The percentage share of GCF in nominal GDP during Q2, 2015 has been estimated at 39.3%. The corresponding shares for Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015 have been 32.0% and 37.6% respectively.
Exports of goods and services including re-exportsThe total value of exports (F.O.B) from the country has been estimated at 86.41 Bn QR in Q2 of 2015 as against 131.50 Bn QR in Q2, 2014, showing a steep decline of 34.3%. This Y-o-Y fall in the total exports during Q2, 2015 is noticed mainly in Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials.
The percentage share of exports in nominal GDP during Q2, 2015 has been estimated at 56.5%. The corresponding shares for Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015 exports in GDP have been 69.5% and 56.7% respectively.Imports of Goods and servicesThe total value of imports (F.O.B) in the country has been estimated at 54.88 Bn QR in Q2 of 2015 as against 58.24 Bn QR recorded in Q2, 2014, showing a fall of 5.8%. This Q2, 2015, [Y-o-Y] fall in the imports is seen in crude materials, inedible, except fuels, transport and communication service, etc.
The percentage share of imports in nominal GDP during Q2, 2015 has been estimated at 35.9%. The corresponding shares for Q2, 2014 and Q1, 2015 have been 30.8% and 32.6% respectively.For more details, click hereFor further details on expenditure components of Quarterly GDP and sequence of accounts, ministry’s website at www.mdps.gov.qa may be referred. The next Press Release on Quarterly Sequence of Accounts, Estimates of National Income, Savings and Expenditure Components of GDP for the third quarter, 2015 will be published on the 14th January, 2016.