The ratings on the State of Qatar primarily reflect the country's very strong economic prospects--driven largely by the gas industry--combined with continuous prudence in fiscal policy and the ongoing improvement in domestic political institutions. Standard&Poor's expects Qatar's prudent fiscal policy to continue. The State's budget for 2004-2005 assumes an average oil price of $19.0 per barrel and targets a deficit of about 2.5% of GDP. By contrast, taking a baseline assumption of an average Brent crude price of about $34.5 per barrel, there will be a fiscal surplus of about 11.6% of GDP in 2004-2005. General government debt has declined in recent years to 50.2% of GDP at the end of fiscal year 2003-2004 (March 31, 2004), with
