Qatar's budget for Q1 of 2023 records surplus: Ministry of Finance

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DOHA:The Ministry of Finance announced on Monday that the budget of Qatar for the first quarter of the year 2023 recorded a surplus of QR19.7 billion.

In its briefing on the actual data of Qatar's budget in the first quarter (Q1) of 2023, the ministry said that the total revenues for this quarter amounted to QR68.6 billion, of which QR63.4 billion were oil and gas revenues, while non-oil revenues amounted to QR5.2 billion.

The total expenditures in the same quarter of 2023 amounted to QR48.9 billion, of which QR15.6 billion were for salaries and wages and QR17.3 billion for current expenses, while secondary capital expenditures amounted to QR1 billion and major capital expenditures amounted to QR15.1 billion, the statement added.

Through its data, the Ministry of Finance explained that the actual average oil price during the aforementioned quarter amounted to $82.2 per barrel, which is higher than the estimated price in Qatar's budget for the year 2023 that amounts to $65 per barrel.

The ministry's estimated data for the state's general budget for the year 2023 estimated the surplus at QR29 billion for the entire year 2023, which means that about 68 percent of this amount has already been achieved during the first quarter of 2023 only.

Upon issuing Qatar's budget for the fiscal year 2023, Minister of Finance HE Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari stated that the surplus will be directed to paying off the public debt, supporting the reserves of Qatar Central Bank (QCB), and increasing the capital of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA).

He pointed out that an average oil price of $65 per barrel, on the basis of which the general budget for the year 2023 was built, is a conservative price adopted by the Ministry of Finance as part of its strategy to ensure the ability to allocate financial resources for existing commitments expected during the year, as well as to finance programmes and projects of the national development strategy.