Qatar Economic Outlook Issue Number 13

Financial Policies
One of the most important financial policy 
measures taken by the government has been 
to provide a financial incentive of QR 75 
billion to enable the QCB to implement 
accommodative monetary policies to support 
the private sector through four axes: 
•
A repurchase window (Repo) with an 
amount of QR 50 billion, at a 1% interest 
rate, has been allocated for providing 
liquidity to commercial banks at low cost 
in order to facilitate procedures for 
postponing loan and interest instalments 
for affected companies. This is in addition 
to allocating guarantees to local banks to 
grant new loans to private sector 
companies at low interest rates. 
•
QR 10 billion were injected into the Qatar 
Stock Exchange by directing state funds 
to increase their investment in the local 
bourse in order to shore up investor 
confidence in the financial market (the 
stock exchange). 
•
The Qatar Development Bank (QDB) was 
authorized to implement the National 
Response Guarantee Program in order to 
respond to the repercussions of Covid-19 
with about (QR 5 billion), through local 
banks registered in the Wage Protection 
System so that banks would be able to 

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Qatar Economic Outlook 2021 - 2023 
70 
finance staff payroll and rental fees for 
small and medium-sized enterprises 
(SMEs) with high labor intensity, such as 
sectors related to tourism, wholesale and 
retail trade, and logistics. 
•
Logistics areas, industrial cities, and Al 
Furjan markets were exempted from 
customs duties, water and electricity 
utilities fees, as well as rents. 
The fiscal policy was not limited to providing 
financial support and customs exemptions, 
but also included increasing health care 
expenditures, 
controlling 
unnecessary 
current expenditures, reallocating capital 
expenditures, and providing aid to 
institutions, individuals, and consumers, 
which made economic activities in general 
continue without a broad cut in jobs. As well, 
this fiscal policy extended to coordination 
with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry 
for working with private sector companies to 
import food and medical commodities to raise 
the strategic stockpile.