Oman’s total credit balance hits $81bn in May

RIYADH: Private sector credit growth has driven Oman’s total credit balance to 31.1 billion Omani rials ($80.9 billion) by the end of May 2024, marking a 3.2 percent annual increase, according to the latest data from the nation’s central bank.

Credit to the private sector alone grew by 3.1 percent, reaching 26.1 billion Omani rials during the same period. The central bank’s data shows that non-financial companies held the largest share of the credit balance at 45.4 percent by the end of May 2024, followed closely by the individual sector at 45.3 percent. Financial companies accounted for 5.7 percent, while other sectors comprised 3.6 percent of the total credit balance.

The expansion of the banking sector aligns with the International Monetary Fund’s forecast that Oman will maintain its economic resilience in near future. 

Following a visit in May led by Cesar Serra, mission chief for Oman at the IMF, the fund concluded that the banking sector remains stable, supported by sufficient capital and liquidity buffers and high asset quality.

Total deposits in Oman’s banking sector increased robustly by 9.2 percent, reaching 30 billion Omani rials by the end of May 2024. Private sector deposits played a significant role in this growth, rising by 14 percent to 20.4 billion Omani rials. The individual sector held the largest share of private sector deposits at 50.4 percent, followed by non-financial corporations at 29.4 percent, financial corporations at 17.4 percent, and other sectors at 2.8 percent.

The total credit balance granted by commercial banks rose by 1.3 percent, with private sector credit increasing by 1.1 percent to 20.3 billion Omani rials by the end of May 2024.

Investment activities among traditional commercial banks also saw significant growth. Total investments in securities surged by 20.8 percent to approximately 5.6 billion Omani rials compared to the same month last year. Investment in government development bonds decreased by 9 percent to 1.9 billion Omani rials. Conversely, investments in foreign securities by commercial banks soared by 80.6 percent to 2.2 billion Omani rials by the end of May 2024.

On the liabilities side, total deposits at conventional commercial banks rose by 7.1 percent to 23.9 billion Omani rials. Government deposits with commercial banks decreased by 3.8 percent to about 5.2 billion Omani rials, and public sector institution deposits fell by 1.5 percent to 1.7 billion Omani rials. Private sector deposits, however, saw a notable increase of 9.9 percent, reaching 16.2 billion Omani rials and making up 67.8 percent of total deposits in conventional commercial banks.