Qatar is to maintain its heavy spending program on infrastructure development in the next few years despite the fall in oil and gas prices, as it unveils more details on its interim budget for the last three quarters of 2015.

Qatar’s interim budget for April-December 2015 is projected to have a small surplus of QR5.5bn ($1.5bn) despite the fall in international oil prices, with total revenue at QR169.3bn ($46.5bn) and total expenditure at QR163.8bn ($45bn), Qatar’s Finance Minister ‘Ali Sharif al-‘Imadi announced this week. The projections are prorated on the basis of 3/4 of their estimates in the current fiscal year ending on 31 March 2015. (CONTINUED - 855 WORDS)