According to official data, Oman’s trade dropped 42 percent to more than 3.88 billion Omani rials ($10 billion) by the end of September, as compared to 6.74 billion rials in the same period of 2024.
The Oman News Agency reported that the preliminary figures provided by the National Centre of Statistics and information indicated that the downward trend was mainly caused by a fall in oil and gas exports.
The trading profile of Oman has been based on hydrocarbons, where mineral fuels and oils, and other products have always ranked top in terms of export, although the other non-oil sectors like plastics, iron, and steel have been diversifying.
The figures underline the fact that Oman is still working on diversifying its economy, and non-oil exports have been increasing in spite of decreases in the hydrocarbon industry.
The ONA report indicated that “This decrease is mainly attributed to the decline in Oman’s oil and gas exports by 16.5 percent to reach 10.92 billion rials by the end of September 2025, compared to 13.07 billion rials during the same period in 2024.”
It further stated that “In contrast, non-oil merchandise exports to the Sultanate of Oman grew by 10.3 percent to reach a value of 5 billion rials by the end of September 2025, compared to 4.53 billion rials during the same period in 2024.”
The entire merchandise exports were down by 9.1 percent to 17.18 billion rials, and re-exports were down by 2.6 percent to 1.27 billion rials. Registered imports have been on a rise of 9.3 percent to 13.30 billion rials compared to 12.16 billion rials a year ago.
The UAE was the largest non-oil export partner with 945 million rials, which increased 28.3 percent, and the largest re-export destination with 484 million rials.
However, the UAE also contributed the highest import by Oman with 3.07 billion rials, then China with 1.35 billion rials, and Kuwait with 1.15 billion rials. The largest recipients of non-oil exports were Saudi Arabia and India, and in re-exports, Iran and the Kingdom were the next-largest.
The financial activity of Oman was also strong, as the overall credit granted by local banks increased by 9 percent to 34.7 billion rials as at the end of the end of October.
The Central Bank of Oman reported an increase of 5.8 percent in lending to the private sector of 28.3 billion rials. The non-financial accounted for 46.8 percent of total credit; meanwhile, the individuals held 44.7 percent. The rest 8.5 percent was constituted by the financial corporations and other sectors.
Bank deposits gained 3.5 percent to 33 billion rials, and the increase in the deposits of the private sector at 9.4 percent to 22.3 billion rials. Individuals are responsible for the biggest share at 50.4 percent, followed by non-financial corporates at 30.3 percent and financial corporates at 17.2 percent.
