With oil making up approximately 60% of the country’s GDP, Kuwait, like its Gulf neighbours, has had to adjust to the new economic realities caused by lower oil prices. However, strong financial buffers have ensured that the country has been able to weather the storm, while a renewed appetite for investment reform bodes well for private sector players. In its long-term policy document, New Kuwai
This chapter contains an overview of the legal framework under which local and foreign investors operate in Kuwait, including a look at the amendments made to the Companies Law and an examination of the New Agency Law which is taking effect after 50 years. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Philip Kotsis, Partner, Al Tamimi & Co.…
This chapter contains an overview of the tax framework under which local and foreign investors operate, including a look at the value-added tax being rolled out in Kuwait and across the GCC, a rundown of the remittance, excise and corporate taxes in place and an outline of the tax incentives and credits under the new investment law.…
Over the last five years Kuwait’s health care industry has gained significant momentum, adequately responding to rapid population growth by simultaneously addressing capacity constraints and improving the quality of health infrastructure. Despite the decline in oil prices and a budget deficit of over KD12bn ($39.7bn), health care spending remains a priority for the government. Although the state…
Driven by rapid urbanisation, the influx of the expatriate workforce, and a rising population of the young and affluent, Kuwait’s retail industry has grown dramatically over the past 10 years. High GDP per capita and the growing popularity of modern retail concepts and formats have also helped to position the country as a major hub for global luxury brands, earning Kuwait City a ninth place ranking…
The state-owned oil industry is by far the largest sector in Kuwait’s economy, representing more than half of GDP, 95% of exports and roughly four-fifths of state revenues. As oil and its byproducts are used to make more than 300,000 products globally, the country’s petroleum-based industries and petrochemicals hold significant growth potential. By comparison, non-petroleum industrial manufacturing…
Characterised by high penetration rates, early adoption of new technology and healthy average revenue per user, the Kuwait telecommunications sector is a small but profitable market in which three major regional providers compete. Faced with the erosion of traditional voice and text revenue streams, all three companies are focusing on strategies to improve services while also monetising data as they…
ICT sits at the heart of the government’s 2035 strategy, New Kuwait, launched in 2017, but Kuwait has already made great strides in the digital economy. In the “Global Information Technology Report 2016” by the World Economic Forum, the country was among the biggest risers, and regulatory reforms are being put in place to usher in an era where tech companies help speed up the evolution towards…
With the country beginning to clear a backlog of major projects in energy, infrastructure and housing, the construction sector in Kuwait has seen a resurgence of activity in recent years. The government’s five-year National Development Plan committed to spend KD34bn ($112.5bn) over the 2015-20 period, and KD12bn ($39.7bn) worth of projects were signed off in the plan’s preliminary year. The country…
