Resilient Gulf economies slightly slower in 2007: IMF

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2007

DUBAI (AFP) — The Gulf oil-producing economies are expected to grow at a slightly slower pace in 2007 as oil prices and output drop but will remain resilient to shocks, the International Monetary Fund said on Sunday.

"The reason why we see the slowdown is simply because oil production is flat or even declining," said the head of the IMF's Middle East and Central Asia department, Mohsin Khan.

"That's what is pulling the overall Gross Domestic Product down," he told AFP in Dubai, a member of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Only Saudi Arabia -- the largest economy in the Middle East and Central Asia -- is expected to register a slightly higher real growth of 4.8 percent, compared to 4.6 percent in 2006, the IMF said in it Regional Economic Outlook, released...