How SWFs take care of government funding
The sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) of Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar have underpinned the ability of GCC economies to surmount the hurdles of lower oil prices and the coronavirus fallout, according to economists.
These SWF assets are likely to have grown last year due to supportive market returns and oil price recovery in the fourth quarter, despite some governments using foreign assets and other deposits to cover government fund requirements.
According to rating agency Fitch, estimated sovereign external assets of the SWFs of the UAE (Abu Dhabi), Kuwait and Qatar are sufficient to cover five to eight years of government spending and six to eight years of non-oil deficits at the current level of oil prices and government spending.