LONDON (Standard&Poor's) Sept. 26, 2011--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today affirmed its 'AA/A-1+' sovereign credit ratings on the State of Qatar. The outlook on the ratings is stable. The transfer and convertibility assessment is 'AA+'. The ratings affirmation and stable outlook apply to other ratings that depend on Qatar's sovereign credit rating, including the 'AA' long-term senior unsecured debt rating on the bonds issued by Qatari Diar Finance Q.S.C., and the long-term foreign-currency rating on Qatar Petroleum. The ratings on the State of Qatar reflect our view of the government's strong reported fiscal and external balance sheets. They also stem from strong growth prospects spurred by newly-completed large liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects. The ratings are constrained by
