Qatar Daily News

The latest update on the purchase of a stake in Porsche by the state of Qatar is that the government of Qatar has issued a statement that within two weeks they will release a result of the talks.

There are emerging reports saying that the Porsche and Piech families, who are in control of Porsche, favor the proposal that Qatar will be getting 25 percent stake in the struggling automaker. Read the rest of this entry »

Qatar Airways is threatening to scrap its orders for Boeing planes and become an exclusive Airbus customer.

The gulf state airline’s chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, warned he may pull the carrier’s 787 ‘dreamliner’ and 777 orders because of long production delays to the programmes.

Qatar has 60 787s on order, and 24 777s. The dreamliner programme is running more than two years late, and it is thought Boeing will have to stump up huge penalty fees to customers as a result.

Speaking at this week’s Paris Air Show, Al Baker slammed Boeing for a lack of communication on what was happening with his orders.
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NYSE Euronext (NYX) and Qatar Holding will establish the Qatar Exchange as a successor to the Doha Securities Market as they look to boost the exchange to international recognition.

By 2015, Qatar is expected to be the second-largest economy in the Gulf Cooperation Council, so the move will likely give NYSE exposure to one of the world’s fastest-growing areas.

The investment and technology joint venture is part of the gas-rich country’s plans to compete with the financial-services sector in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

NYSE earlier this year scaled back its planned investment in the exchange, which has been in the works for more than a year, to $200 million. That would give the company a 20% stake in the new exchange. The Qatar Investment Authority will retain 80% of the exchange through Qatar Holding, its investment arm. Qatar announced last June that it had selected NYSE Euronext as a partner for the project.

NYSE executive Andre Went, who served as managing director based in Amsterdam, will be the new exchange’s chief executive. The Qatar Exchange will begin trading under the new name and management starting Sunday.
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Tourist Visa

Only hotels are able to procure these, and the visa duration corresponds to your length of stay at the hotel. An onward or return ticket is required, along with the usual documents.

Business Visa

Business visas are valid for three months from their date of issue and are for a single visit for a period of one week, with possible extensions up to four weeks. The simplest and quickest route to secure a business visa is for your sponsor to organise one in Qatar.

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Until 1966, Qatar used the Indian rupee as currency, in the form of Gulf rupees. When India devalued the rupee in 1966, Qatar, along with the other states using the Gulf rupee, chose to introduce its own currency. Before doing so, Qatar briefly adopted the Saudi riyal, then introduced the Qatar and Dubai riyal. The Saudi riyal was worth 1.065 rupees, whilst the Qatar and Dubai riyal was equal to the rupee prior to its devaluation.

Until 1973, Qatar and Dubai jointly issued the riyal. However, following Dubai’s entrance into the United Arab Emirates, Qatar began issuing the Qatari riyal separate from Dubai.