Qatar has not had one business close down as a result of the global meltdown so far, stated the Qatar Minister for Business and Trade in an article by the Peninsula today: Qatar Businesses Not Hit by Global Meltdown.
He also stated that reports of firms laying of staff were simply not true, and that banks had not put restrictions on lending - contradicting recent reports by local newspapers.
Quite how far Qatar has escaped the global recession is harder to judge, although generally the feeling in Qatar is that there has been some effect.
Certainly, the fall in the population of Qatar in December, though slight, seems to point to a reduction in economic activity.
Furthermore, the forcible merging of some Qatar companies, including property giants Barwa and Qatar Real Estate Investment, certainly seems a sign that all is not well in at least some areas of the economy.
However, as many expats returning from holiday have noticed, Qatar certainly does not have the air of despondency that many other countries have.
How Qatar will fare in the future remains to be seen - as we saw in our last blog post there has been a major fall in US demand for Liquid Natural Gas.
However, as we have noted before huge government plans to invest in the infrastructure of the country could help to balance the negative effects of the global credit crunch.
The Minister confirmed this saying that the budget for 2009 is set to be the largest ever unveiled by the State of Qatar with massive funds being allocated for various projects.
Of course, the good news for those with an economic interest in Qatar is that unlike the UK, tax-free Qatar can actually afford to buy its way out of a potential recession!
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