GCC Braces For Sharp Economic Decline

ABU DHABI [MENL] -- Gulf Arab oil producers were preparing for a sharp
economic decline, including a recession, in 2009.
The HSBC bank warned that the extent of the economic decline depended on
the price of crude oil. HSBC said a recession would strike the region should
the price of crude oil average at $25 per barrel in 2009. The exception
would be Qatar, which depends largely on natural gas for energy exports.