Home BL Dialogue Cover Story Qatar Reports 60% Surge in Foreign-Owned Companies

Qatar Reports 60% Surge in Foreign-Owned Companies

October 15, 2026
Read Time - < 1 min

Qatar recorded QR248.44 billion in cumulative industrial investment by the second quarter of 2026, as new business registrations, foreign company formation and private-sector exports all increased.

The latest figures from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) point to growing activity across several parts of the economy, from company formation and manufacturing to exports and intellectual property.

One of the clearest signs came from new business registrations.

A total of 6,745 new commercial registrations were recorded during the second quarter, up 6.6 percent from the first three months of the year.

The increase was considerably stronger among non-Qatari companies. Some 5,272 were established during the quarter, representing a 60 percent increase compared with Q1.

Qatar’s factories are looking beyond the domestic market.

Eleven new factories began production during the second quarter, taking the total number that started operating in the first half of 2026 to 28.

Those factories represent combined investments of QR253 million, according to the ministry. But the numbers also show a gradual shift beyond simply adding manufacturing capacity: a larger share of Qatar’s factories is selling overseas.

The proportion of factories exporting their products increased from 23 percent in the first quarter to 25 percent in Q2.

Private-sector exports, meanwhile, rose from QR800 million to QR900 million over the same period, an increase of 12.5 percent.

The number of national products also increased by 8 percent compared with the second quarter of 2025.

For industrial investors, one potentially important change is happening behind the scenes. The time required to obtain initial approval for an industrial project has been reduced to one working day, shortening one of the early stages involved in launching a project.

The ministry also collected QR11 million in customs duties through measures aimed at combating harmful trade practices by the end of the second quarter.