Statistics issued by the Central Bank of the Sultanate of Oman showed an increase in the banking sector’s contribution to financing development plans, significantly over the one-year period between January 2021 and January 2022.
The total growth of the value of credit facilities granted by conventional and Islamic banks in that period amounted to about 24.1 billion riyals (62.2 billion dollars). While the total balance of financing granted by commercial banks increased by about 2.7 percent, compared to an annual rate. The credit granted to the private sector by conventional commercial banks increased by 1.1 percent to reach 19.2 billion riyals ($49.9 billion) by the end of January 2022.
As for the balance of financing granted to the Islamic banking sector, it rose even more, as it jumped at a rate of 10.6 percent to reach about 4.9 billion riyals (12.7 billion dollars) compared to the same period in 2021. The growth of credit granted to investment projects proves the stability and durability of the banking sector, despite warnings of the possibility of a widening gap in non-performing loans, which analysts consider as a safety valve for the government's economic reform program in light of the many financial challenges facing the Gulf country.
Source (Al-Arab Newspaper of London, Edited)
