Qatar's central bank said it would keep its currency tied to the weak US dollar after some members of the International Monetary Fund's board suggested that severing the peg would be one way to fight inflation.

'The peg to the US dollar would be kept to serve the interest of the Qatari economy and to maintain financial and monetary stability,' QNA quoted Central Bank Governor Sheikh Abdullah bin Saud Al Thani as saying.

Investors pushed the Qatari riyal to a five year high last month betting the central bank would eventually give up trying to defend the peg and focus on fighting inflation, which is running near a record high of 15 per cent.

The dollar's tumble to record lows against the euro last month is driving up the cost of imports in Qatar and the peg forces the central bank to track monetary policy of the US
Federal Reserve, which is cutting interest rates.

The International Monetary Fund said on Friday that Qatar had a bright economic outlook due to high oil prices but was at risk from inflation, and one way to contain this pressure would be to loosen the peg between the riyal and dollar.

'A few (IMF Board) Directors suggested that consideration be given to moving to a more flexible exchange rate regime to help curb inflationary pressures,' the IMF said in a statement.

Qatar's central bank dismissed the idea, QNA said.

'The dollar's decline in the past two years compared to other major currencies does not change the fundamentals that support the riyal's peg to the dollar,' Sheikh Abdullah said in a statement.

'Annual inflation rose to between 12 per cent and 13 per cent in the past two years in Qatar but this is mainly due to local considerations resulting from economic growth ... and it does not justify a change of exchange rate strategy,' he said. Reuters