Boston, MA -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/27/2012 -- BMI's forecast unchanged this quarter.The decision to award Qatar the 2022 FIFA World Cup is expected to unleash a new wave of investment, while the government's ICT-2015 strategy will also create opportunities. With its booming economy and ambitious ICT investment programme, Qatar is expected to be the fastest-growing IT market in the Gulf region over BMI's five-year forecast period to 2016.

Headline Expenditure Projections

Computer Hardware Sales: US$240mn in 2011 to US$253mn in 2012, +9% in US dollar terms. Forecast in US dollar terms unchanged following stronger-than-expected sales growth in 2011.

Software Sales: US$89mn in 2011 to US$100mn in 2012, +16% in US dollar terms. Forecast in US dollar terms unchanged with a stronger strategic focus on software spending and hosted software..

IT Services Sales: US$135mn in 2011 to US$158mn in 2012, +22% in US dollar terms. Forecast in US dollar terms unchanged with services seen as outperforming the hardware and software segments.

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Risk/Reward Ratings: Qatar's score was 59.7 out of 100.0. Qatar ranks third in our latest RRR table, behind the UAE and Israel but ahead of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The country also ranks fifth for its industry rewards score of 38.1, and its overall rating was boosted by a high country structure score of 100.

Key Trends And Developments

- In its attempts to diversify the economy, the Qatari government is undertaking massive infrastructure projects, boosting fields such as construction, transport and, increasingly, tourism. By 2011, growth in the non-hydrocarbons sector was gathering pace, and all these sectors are likely therefore to offer promise to vendors of IT hardware, software and services.
- Qatar's successful bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup has strengthened its ambition to become the world's largest sporting event host and will boost the ongoing development of transport infrastructure as well as the construction of stadiums. Qatari corporations and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are looking to benefit from Qatar's expected infrastructure development and rapid growth and will invest in IT to boost competitiveness.
- A 2012 Qtel survey found that 77% of SMEs planned to increase their ICT spending this year, with the average increase estimated at around 20%. This segment represents a potential growth area, as according to Qtel's figures, only about 60% of businesses in Qatar are currently connected to the internet. Cloud solutions targeted at this segment are likely to prove a promising opportunity.

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