Qatar's real GDP growth speeded up to 6.2% y/y in the third quarter of 2013 from 6.0% the previous quarter mainly on higher growth in the mining and quarrying sector, the Qatar Statistics Authority said. The trade, construction, utilities and agricultural sectors also helped boost GDP in the quarter. In quarterly terms, the country's GDP rose 4.3% q/q, accelerating from 0.6% in Q2.

In Nominal terms, Qatar’s GDP grew 6.4% y/y and 3.3% q/q to QAR 185.3bn in Q3. The oil and natural gas sector contributed some 55% of GDP at a nominal value of QAR 101.1bn. 

Growth was also driven by Qatar's investments in large scale public infrastructure projects in the run-up to the 2022 World Cup, which offset the relatively sluggish increase in the output of the hydrocarbon sector when compared with the previous years. The Mining and quarrying output grew 1.8% y/y in Q3, up from 1.0% the quarter before, while the overall non-hydrocarbon output climbed 9.5% y/y. 

In Q3, construction output climbed 13% y/y due to high public spending. The government will spend USD 140bn on infrastructure ahead of the 2022 World Cup. The manufacturing sector's output rose 3.1% y/y and 0.1% q/q as new petrochemical production sites became operational and external demand held up. Higher output of Gas to Liquids (GTL), polymers products and methanol boosted the reading.

Qatar’s real GDP growth will ease to 5.1% in 2013 from 6.2% the year before, the IMF said in its October World Economic Outlook. But the average GDP growth for the first three quarters of 2013 now stands at 6.1%, meaning the IMF’s forecast will likely be overshot.