FIFA World Cup 2022 Bolsters Qatar’s Retail & Service Sectors

Qatar Financial Center’s latest Purchasing Managers Index survey reveals rapid growth in business activity in December and November due to the FIFA World Cup. Wholesale, retail, and service providers in Qatar registered huge expansion activity driving a record overall increase in prices charged for goods and services. Qatar’s PMI is a composite single-figure indicator of non-energy private sector performance that is derived from new orders, output, employment, suppliers' delivery times, and stock of purchases. The PMI rose for the second month running from 48.8 in November to 49.6 in December pointing to a near-stabilization in overall non-energy private sector business conditions at the end of 2022. Non-oil private sector output rose for the thirtieth consecutive month in December. 

The rate of growth was little-changed since November and is well above the long-run survey average. The output index in November was 62.8 which was countered by a construction-driven pause in new work and improving supply chains. The index trended at 69.0 throughout the entire year which represented the highest figure in the survey’s history compared to a long-run trend of 54.8. “The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 makes its mark on the Qatari economy in December, with another rapid increase in business activity fueled by the retail and services sectors. The December data round off a stellar 2022 with the Output Index and headline PMI trending at 69.0 and 57.7 respectively, the highest annual averages since the survey began in 2017,” Yousuf Al-Jaida, CEO at QFC Authority, said in a statement.

The financial services sector also recorded a massive increase in business activity in the last month of 2022 demonstrating the strongest growth in the near-six-year period. Input prices paid by financial services companies rose only fractionally in December, while charges imposed for services increased for the first time in six months. “The tournament's legacy is also looking secure, with widespread reports from companies of post-competition business opportunities and an expected permanent boost to tourism. The Future Activity Index, tracking the 12-month outlook, rose to a 29-month high in December,” Al-Jaida added. The QFS is a business center located in Doha that provides a platform for firms to do business in Qatar offering a legal, regulatory, tax and business environment.