According to a report published by Global Finance, Qatar was ranked first on the richest countries list with a per capita GDP income totaling $90.149 thousand.
Qatar is followed by Luxemburg, Norway, Singapore, Brunei, America, Hong Kong, Switzerland, Netherlands and Australia. Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain, and Oman ranked 14, 18, 33, and 36 respectively.
The rankings are based on per capita GDP and purchase power parity, a measure that economists typically use to look at an individual’s wealth when comparing differences in the cost of living and economic power between countries. The ranking affirms that Qatar has succeeded in rising from the 182nd place to first in the world, surpassing Luxembourg.
Qatar has launched a five year development plan (2011-2016) to increase investments to $125 billion. $60 billion will be invested in infrastructure, including preparing the country to host the World Cup of Soccer in 2022.
According to Yousef Hussain Kamal, the Qatari Minister of Finance, the economy is expecting growth of 18%-20%. Such high growth levels are expected to continue up until the 2022 World Cup events. However, a concern is that the growth will increase the risk of inflation to 2007-2008 levels.
Qatar holds the third biggest reserve of natural gas after Russia and Iran. Qatar has been successful in attracting Western companies, especially the US, to improve the gas industry through the employment of modern technological methods.
Source: www.yallafinance.com
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