1.3 percent real growth for Gulf economies in 1998

The Gulf economies recorded a real growth rate that reached nearly 1.3% last year in spite of the great reduction in income from the energy sector due to the fall in petroleum prices.

Independent statistics gathered by the economic expert Hendi Azam show that the total local production for the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council increased to nearly $235 billion with the real prices in last year in comparison to nearly $232 billion in 1997.

The estimations showed that all the GCC countries achieved actual growth in their economies in spite of the severe retreat in the total local production due to the reduction in the petroleum prices by more than a third.