Total revenue for the second quarter was down 12.4% Spending in the quarter fell almost 2% DUBAI: Qatar recorded a budget surplus of 2.6 billion riyals ($713.31 million) in the second quarter of 2024, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday, adding it would use it to reduce public debt. The Gulf state, among the world’s biggest exporters of liquefied natural gas, posted a surplus of 2 billion riyals in the first quarter. Total revenue for the second quarter was down 12.4 percent compared to the prior year period, at 59.9 billion riyals, the ministry said, after weaker demand curbed international gas prices. Spending in the quarter fell almost 2 percent to 57.3 billion riyals, year-on-year. The entire surplus would go toward lowering Qatar’s public debt, leaving no cash surplus, the ministry said. Like regional peers, Qatar has accelerated efforts to diversify economic sectors and revenue streams, but remains reliant on gas revenue for government income. In December it forecasted that oil and gas revenue would fall by 14.5 percent in 2024 while non-oil revenue is expected to rise by about 2.4 percent.