Rising economic growth seen in Gulf on high oil prices

Volatile commodity: Employees visit a natural gas liquids facility at Saudi Aramco’s Shaybah oil field. IMF expects oil to peak this year, then decline gradually to about US60 a barrel by 2023. — Bloomberg

DUBAI: Economic growth is expected to accelerate in Gulf Arab nations because rising oil prices have let them spend more on development projects, but the outlook appears “challenging” and reforms are essential, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said.

The Washington-based lender expects the economies of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to grow 2.4% this year and 3% in 2019, slightly higher than a May forecast and a reversal from a 0.4% contraction last year.