DOHA (Reuters) -Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund (QIA) is planning to at least double its annual U.S. investments in the next decade, its CEO said on Tuesday, after the fund has already pledged to invest $500 billion in the U.S. economy over the next 10 years.
President Donald Trump visited Doha last week during his high-profile Gulf tour that focused on major business deals and leveraged rehabilitated relations with a key U.S. ally for investment commitments.
He signed agreements with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani that the White House said would generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion, and included a $96 billion sale to Qatar Airways. But it did not offer a comprehensive breakdown.
When asked on how the fund’s annual investment into the U.S. would change since previous years, CEO Mohammed Al Sowaidi said: “It increased the pace for sure. So I think some years probably increased by double, some years probably buying more than double what we’ve been doing for the past five to six years.”
Trump helped isolate Doha in 2017, when he lent support to a trade and diplomatic embargo imposed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt, accusing the small but wealthy gas producer of backing terrorism among other charges.
Doha has since rehabilitated itself in Washington’s eyes, leveraging its deep pockets, and Trump’s visit was the first by a U.S. president in 23 years.
(Reporting by Federico Maccioni and Andrew Mills, Writing by Ahmed Elimam, Nayera Abdallah and Louise HeavensEditing by Louise Heavens)
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