‘Taxing GCC money transfers could create black market’

A Saudi Jeweller counts Saudi Riyal banknotes money after selling gold to a customer in a jewellery shop at the surrounding area of the Grand Mosque during the annual haj pilgrimage in the holy city of Makkaha in this October 20, 2012 file photo. (Reuters)

JEDDAH: Imposing fees on money transfers among Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states could create a black market for money transfers, Nader Mohammad, a World Bank official for the Middle East and North Africa, said Thursday.
“From our experience in many countries, imposing such a tax will cause a parallel market that operates outside the banking framework to emerge, which entails huge problems,” Mohammad was quoted as saying by Al-Eqtisadiah newspaper.
“The economic growth rate in the GCC is 1.6 percent, but we expect it to reach 2.6 percent in 2018 and 2019,” he said, attributing this to the growth of non-oil sectors in member states.