Qatar

On 20 September, at the Qatar Economic Forum in New York, the Prime Minister launched Doha Investment, a wholly owned QIA platform with its own board. Its job is to build national champions and support private-sector growth. It will manage QIA's domestic portfolio of more than 40 companies, which creates a new counterpart for foreign partners seeking co-investment or joint ventures.

Qatar Investment Authority · 2026-09-20

At the same forum the government announced more than US$60 billion in projects and investment opportunities over five years. This includes about US$38.5 billion of new infrastructure, some of it through public-private partnerships (PPPs) with tendering said to start immediately, and US$22.5 billion of expected private investment in real estate and hospitality, led by the Simaisma Beach project. Contractors, engineering firms and PPP investors should identify early which procurement rules apply to each project.

K&L Gates · 2026-09-20

On 14 September the Ministry of Commerce and Industry launched Companies House. It brings registration and licensing for the Qatar Financial Centre, Qatar Free Zones Authority, Qatar Science & Technology Park and Media City Qatar into one place, and its stated role also covers tax, immigration and compliance checks. For foreign firms choosing a zone, this should mean one point of entry instead of several separate regulators.

K&L Gates · 2026-09-14

The Cabinet approved a draft competition law and sent it to the Shura Council. It would replace Law No. 19 of 2006, which requires notification before any deal that could create market dominance but sets no filing thresholds. The draft covers abuse of dominance and the review of mergers and concentrations within set timeframes, so foreign parties planning joint ventures or acquisitions with a Qatari link should build merger control into deal timelines.

K&L Gates · 2026-09-29

On 16 September the Qatar Central Bank raised all three policy rates by 25 basis points, effective 17 September: the deposit rate to 4.10%, the lending rate to 4.60% and the repo rate to 4.35%. The move follows the Fed's September hike, as expected under the riyal's dollar peg. It raises local borrowing costs for entrants funding operations or projects in riyals.

The Peninsula (Qatar) · 2026-09-16

The National Planning Council's July CPI, the first on a new 2024 base year and updated basket, rose 0.71% from June, and 1.22% month-on-month excluding housing and utilities. These are large monthly increases for an economy whose annual inflation had been running around 2%. Entrants should look again at cost and pricing assumptions, and note that the methodology change limits comparison with older figures.

Qatar News Agency · 2026-09-29

On 7 October the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged tanker Acers was hit by multiple projectiles about 51 nautical miles north of Madinat ash Shamal, with crew casualties reported. Reuters counted at least 12 oil and gas tankers attacked between 28 September and 5 October, the most intense week since the war began. Because this strike was well west of Hormuz, firms shipping goods to or from Qatar should expect higher war-risk insurance premiums, freight costs and delays across the whole Gulf.

gCaptain · 2026-10-08

At the UN General Assembly on 22 September, the Emir said Qatar would not limit itself to being a mediator, and Doha says it remains committed to diplomacy to end the US–Iran conflict. Qatar's mediation role gives it some diplomatic cover. Even so, regional escalation could still close its airspace at short notice or disrupt flights and logistics.

Al Jazeera · 2026-09-22