With oil prices falling by almost 50 percent since last July, a correction in commodity prices is expected here in the near future, the Undersecretary of Business and Trade, Abdullah Al Qahtani, said yesterday.
He said prices of certain products had stabilised while those of food products like sugar and oil had begun easing. He predicted that commodity prices would undergo correction if oil prices continued to fall.
“The fall in oil prices could be a temporary condition. The question is whether this would continue. If oil prices remain at the current levels, they will impact production costs and consequently the prices of commodities,” Al Qahtani said.
He was speaking at a news conference to announce the upcoming Estate Qatar 2008: Qatar Property Investment Forum, at the Ministry of Business and Trade yesterday.
Referring to inflation, Al Qahtani noted that its main cause has been an increase in house rents.
“Things remain to be seen in the coming three months; whether inflation ceases to rise. This should be seen from a domestic point of view rather than just individual inflation figures, because if inflation stands at 12 percent and growth at 25 percent it is better than countries with two percent growth and one percent inflation,” he said.
Al Qahtani noted that Qatar and the UAE had the highest inflation rates among the GCC countries, but at the same time they had the highest growth rates.
The Pen
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