The value of Qatar's hydrocarbon exports were down by 40.5 per cent to QR15.6 billion ($4.279 billion) in July this year, compared to the same month last year, a report said.

Qatar’s trade balance achieved a surplus of QR14.3 billion ($3.92 billion) in July, down 1.4 per cent compared to the previous month and down 55.6 per cent compared to July 2014, the Peninsula Qatar report said quoting Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics (MDPS) data.

The statistics showed that exports for July were worth QR23.5 billion ($6.44 billion), down 41.7 per cent compared to the same month of last year and 1.1 per cent month-on-month.

Imports were up 13.5 per cent to QR9.2 billion.

Japan was the top exporter to Qatar, exporting QR4.3 billion worth of products. South Korea came in second place with QR4 billion.