MSX ends week lower, led by financial & industrial index

MSX30 Index ended the week down by 0.85 per cent. The Financial Index fell by 0.71 per cent while the Industry Index fell by 0.18 per cent. Services Index was up 1.31 per cent and the Shariah Index rose 0.71 per cent. Omanis and Arabs absorbed the selling pressure from GCC and foreign investors.

Oman Fisheries Company says it plans to double production to 56,000 metric tons in 12 months. CEO Suleiman al Ghannami told Arab News: “In 2021 we processed around 28,000 metric tons and we are targeting double that quantity in 2022. We anticipate exponential growth.” The company, one of the oldest fish processing operations in the country, plans to hit this target by expanding its international joint ventures to take advantage of technologies from companies around the world.

Oman jumped to 6th place in the area of business fundamentals and ranked overall as the 14th most competitive emerging market, according to the 2022 Agility Emerging Markets Logistics Index. The UAE (3), Saudi Arabia (6) and Qatar (7) ranked among the top 10 emerging markets in the 2022 index, which was led by China (1) and India (2).

The Sultanate of Oman was ranked first in the growth rate of total investments in the Arab world, in the 2021 report of the Arab Investment and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation. The final Quarterly Investment Guarantee report for 2021 issued by Daman indicated that the Sultanate of Oman’s total investments grew by 37.3 per cent to RO 6.3 billion in 2021. The figure is expected to hit RO 7 billion this year. Oman was ranked second among the Arab countries in the highest increase in GDP per capita in 2021 with a percentage of 23.7. GDP per capita increased by 23.7 per cent from $14,200 in 2020 to $17,600 in 2021. Per capita GDP is expected to grow to $18,200 in 2022. Total Arab countries per capita GDP rose by 1.3 per cent to $9,300 on average. The report indicated that the Sultanate of Oman’s GDP increased by 2.5 per cent in 2021 and the growth in GDP is expected to reach 2.9 per cent in the current year.

During the week, it was announced that with the aim of strengthening cooperation between the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation and various government bodies in alignment with Oman Vision 2040, the ministry announced the launch of the Strategic Research Projects Programme (SRPP). The Research programme is directed to address research challenges of national priority government institutions.

Furthermore, the technical committee of the National Programme for Investment and Exports Development, a public drive codenamed “Nazdahir”, also held its annual meeting during the week under the auspices of Aseela Salim al Samsami, Investment Promotion Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion. The meeting brought together representatives of government departments concerned.

The meeting familiarised the members about major initiatives undertaken by the programme, including “Fast Track”, “Economic Diversification Investment Initiatives”, “Foreign Investor Residency”. The meeting also looked into the 2022 annual plan, delegating tasks and roles to sectors tasked with enhancing the competitiveness of the investment climate in the Sultanate of Oman and the outcome of the Fast Track Initiative during 2021. The National Programme for Investment and Exports Development figures among the efforts of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion to improve entrepreneurship, attract foreign investments and expedite the implementation of investment projects.

Latest statistics from NCSI Oman showed that exports from Oman crossed RO12bn during 9M21. NCSI numbers show that out of the RO12.28bn exports during the period, RO7.8bn came from oil and gas exports, while RO 4.18bn was earned through non-oil exports. Re-exports contributed RO1.2bn. Foreign Direct Investments to Oman also rose during the first nine months last year, reaching RO1.48bn in 2021 as compared to RO1.42bn in 2020. The industrial sector, during this period, contributed 8.5 per cent to the country’s GDP, or RO 2bn.

During the week, it was also announced that a number of key measures have been listed by the government which would help increase productivity and efficiency in the implementation of projects and initiatives, as also improve fiscal performance. Enshrined in the guide to the 2022 State General Budget, the measures can be broadly divided into two categories, namely, government projects and initiatives and fiscal performance improvement measures. There are 12 initiatives listed under the former, amongst which are: Government projects and initiatives; Ejadah; Fiscal performance; Improvement measures; Programme-based budget; National register of assets; Pricing of services; Pension funds; and Contracts and procurement system. [Courtesy: U-Capital]