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Qatari Banks Face Growing Risks of Asset Quality Deterioration

A view of Doha Bank Tower (R) in Doha April 30, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Dabbous
A view of Doha Bank Tower (R) in Doha April 30, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Dabbous
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Qatari Banks Face Growing Risks of Asset Quality Deterioration

A view of Doha Bank Tower (R) in Doha April 30, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Dabbous
A view of Doha Bank Tower (R) in Doha April 30, 2012. REUTERS/Mohammed Dabbous

Fitch Ratings has affirmed that the main risks facing Qatari banks lay in the deterioration of assets’ quality, noting that the government support to the banks since the beginning of the Gulf crisis in June 2017 aimed to alleviate pressure on banking liquidity.

The risks vary among banks but Viability Ratings are not under immediate threat as they incorporate some allowance for expected deterioration in asset quality, said Fitch in a report on Thursday.

Once again, the Qatari banks are compelled to depend on local deposits – Fitch saw that Qatar should take other procedures to support the liquidity in case of another wave of deposit withdrawals occur.

“The public sector injected USD40 billion of funding in June-December 2017, mainly placements by the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance and the Qatar Investment Authority,” it said.

“Government support to the banking system since the beginning of the Gulf crisis has eased pressure on liquidity but asset quality is coming under pressure from deterioration in the real estate market. Oversupply has reduced property prices and rentals, and payment delays in the contracting sector are rising,” it added. 

“We calculate that the highest problematic loans ratio among rated Qatari banks is about 10%… The risks vary among banks but Viability Ratings are not under immediate threat as they incorporate some allowance for expected deterioration in asset quality,” according to Fitch Ratings.

“Despite any verification of current facts, ratings and forecasts can be affected by future events or conditions that were not anticipated at the time a rating or forecast was issued or affirmed,” it added.

Standard & Poor's has downgraded its long-term rating with a negative outlook.

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Egypt Says it Will Pay $1.3 Billion in Arrears to Oil Companies by June

Egypt had accumulated about $6.1 billion in arrears to foreign oil companies by June 30, 2024 (Ministry of Petroleum)
Egypt had accumulated about $6.1 billion in arrears to foreign oil companies by June 30, 2024 (Ministry of Petroleum)
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Egypt Says it Will Pay $1.3 Billion in Arrears to Oil Companies by June

Egypt had accumulated about $6.1 billion in arrears to foreign oil companies by June 30, 2024 (Ministry of Petroleum)
Egypt had accumulated about $6.1 billion in arrears to foreign oil companies by June 30, 2024 (Ministry of Petroleum)

Egypt will settle $1.3 billion in arrears to international oil companies by June, the petroleum ministry said on Saturday, accelerating its previous timetable for repayments.

Egypt had accumulated about $6.1 billion in arrears to foreign oil companies by June 30, 2024 due to a prolonged foreign currency shortage that delayed payments and weighed on investment and gas output. The shortage has since eased, ⁠though some companies have ⁠said that arrears have been once again accumulating.

Under its prior timetable, announced in January this year, the government had expected to still have arrears of some $1.2 billion by June.

Clearing debt may encourage ⁠foreign oil and gas companies to resume drilling, which would boost local production that has been steadily falling since peaking in 2021.

More local production would help the country to reduce its energy imports.

Business

China's Premier Vows to Expand Global 'Trade Pie'

Chinese Premier Li Qiang is seen on a big screen live broadcasting his speech at the opening of the China Development Forum 2026 held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on March 22, 2026. (Photo by Ng Han Guan / POOL / AFP)
Chinese Premier Li Qiang is seen on a big screen live broadcasting his speech at the opening of the China Development Forum 2026 held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on March 22, 2026. (Photo by Ng Han Guan / POOL / AFP)
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China's Premier Vows to Expand Global 'Trade Pie'

Chinese Premier Li Qiang is seen on a big screen live broadcasting his speech at the opening of the China Development Forum 2026 held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on March 22, 2026. (Photo by Ng Han Guan / POOL / AFP)
Chinese Premier Li Qiang is seen on a big screen live broadcasting his speech at the opening of the China Development Forum 2026 held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on March 22, 2026. (Photo by Ng Han Guan / POOL / AFP)

China's number two leader Li Qiang said Sunday that his country was willing to help expand the global "trade pie" by further opening up, state media reported, while he slammed unilateralism from certain countries.

Many of China's key trading partners have increasingly called on Beijing to reduce its soaring trade surplus owing to its impact on local competition.

Its trade surged by a fifth in the first two months of the year, official data showed earlier this month, significantly outpacing forecasts.

China "will steadfastly advance high-level opening up, import more high-quality foreign goods, and work alongside all parties to promote the optimized and balanced development of trade", Premier Li Qiang told business executives in Beijing on Sunday, according to Xinhua.

Li was speaking at the opening of the annual China Development Forum, attended this year by prominent business leaders including Apple CEO Tim Cook, AFP reported.

The Chinese premier added that Beijing would work with other countries to "join forces to make the global economic and trade pie larger for everyone".

He slammed growing unilateralism and protectionism, which he said was "no panacea for resolving problems".

Beijing has been seeking to steer a shaky economy onto a more stable path since the end of the pandemic, particularly by boosting consumption.

It had been locked in a blistering trade war last year with Washington after President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on countries including China.

The recent trade boost is a lifeline for China, the world's second-largest economy, as domestic consumer activity has slumped, and adds to the record surplus achieved last year.

The China Development Forum convenes as the Middle East war, triggered by US and Israeli strikes on Iran, rages on.

Tehran has retaliated with strikes across the region and beyond in a conflict that has threatened global energy security as well as China's oil supplies.

Li told the Chinese officials and global business executives the international rules-based order was suffering "severe disruption" with power politics "running rampant".

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng met with senior representatives of multinational companies including HSBC, UBS, Schneider Electric and Standard Chartered on Saturday, Xinhua reported.

Business

EU Urges Reduced Gas-storage Target

Europe's largest gas storage facility in Rehden, Germany (Reuters)
Europe's largest gas storage facility in Rehden, Germany (Reuters)
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EU Urges Reduced Gas-storage Target

Europe's largest gas storage facility in Rehden, Germany (Reuters)
Europe's largest gas storage facility in Rehden, Germany (Reuters)

The European Commission on Saturday urged EU member countries to lower their target for filling natural gas storage in the coming months, to alleviate price pressures caused by the war in the Middle East.

EU energy commissioner Dan Jorgensen sent a letter asking to "consider reducing your filling target to 80 percent as early as possible in the filling season to provide certainty and reassurance to market participants", down from the usual 90 percent goal.

Iran's retaliation for the US-Israeli war launched against has included attacks on Gulf neighbors, effectively closing the strategic Strait of Hormuz to tankers.

Oil prices have soared more than 50 percent since the start of the war, which was triggered on February 28, and natural gas prices in the EU have risen by more than 30 percent.

The price shock is expected to lead to a higher pace of inflation, and dampen economic growth.

While Europe is entering its warmer months, this is the period its countries refill their gas storage in preparation for winter.

With higher gas prices, though, and elevated risk for supply, the EU is facing competition with Asia for supply.

"Developments in Iran and the wider region threaten regional and global security," Jorgensen said in his letter.

"When it comes to energy, this situation and the attacks on energy infrastructure are significantly impacting global oil and gas markets."

He said that the EU's gas supply "remains relatively protected at this stage", as it gets most of its liquefied natural gas from the United States.

"But, as a net energy importer on global markets, the resulting high and volatile global prices may also impact the EU gas storage projections."

Consequently, Jorgensen said, EU countries should look to refill stores early, and do so over a longer period, "to mitigate pressure on prices and avoid (an) end-of-summer rush".

He noted that, in case of "difficult conditions" and a commission assessment, the countries can deviate from the target by up to 20 percent.