Oman’s trade balance recorded a surplus of OMR877 million ($2.27 billion) at the end of January 2024, compared to a surplus of OMR686 million ($1.78 billion) during the same period in 2023.
According to statistics from the National Center for Statistical Information in Oman, commodity exports by the end of January 2024 amounted to OMR2.303 billion, showing an increase of 16.7 percent compared to the same period the previous year when it was OMR1.974 billion.
Read more: Oman to embrace IBAN system: A new era of seamless financial transactions
Meanwhile, the value of commodity imports into Oman reached OMR1.426 billion ($3.7 billion) by the end of January 2024, marking a 10.6 percent increase compared to the same period last year when it was OMR1.288 billion.
This month, S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook on Oman’s credit to positive from stable. This revision cites Oman’s strengthening government balance sheet and progress on economic reform efforts.
Moreover, S&P has affirmed Oman’s ‘BB+/B’ long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings.
S&P’s positive outlook hinges on the prospects that the Omani government’s balance sheet will continue to strengthen. Additionally, S&P believes Oman’s economic reform program could lead to faster-than-expected deleveraging in many state-owned enterprises, without dampening economic growth. This would strengthen the overall resilience of Oman’s economy to adverse oil price shocks.
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