IMF expects GCC reserves to grow by $300-$350 billion in three years on higher oil prices

CAIRO – The International Monetary Fund expects the foreign reserves of the six oil-rich Arab countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to increase by $300-$350 billion in the next three years, a senior official said on Tuesday.

The GCC – which comprises Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman – “will benefit from the increase in oil prices”, Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the IMF, told Asharq TV.

Oil prices have risen about 60% from the start of the year as global demand recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.

(Reporting by Moataz Abdelrahiem; Writing by Lilian Wagdy; Editing by Kim Coghill and Andrew Heavens)