The Omani Ministry of Finance revealed that the Sultanate recorded a budget deficit since the beginning of the year, which amounted to 890.2 million riyals ($2.32 billion), by the end of May due to the drop in oil prices and the decline in production.
The ministry indicated that oil revenues decreased in the first five months of this year by 23 percent compared to the corresponding period of 2020, when the total revenues, including non-oil revenues, fell by 19 percent.
According to the ministry, the gross domestic product (GDP) at current prices fell by 2.5 percent in the first quarter of this year under the weight of the decline in oil activities by 20.6 percent, while the non-oil sector grew by 5.7 percent.
The Sultanate of Oman has worked to reduce public spending to lessen the fiscal deficit, but the adjustments do not match the decline in revenues. The ministry noted that public spending continues to decline, as the rate of decline reached 2.9 percent annually until the end of May. In October last year, the Sultanate developed a medium-term financial plan, which reassured investors and helped it secure loans and issue bonds worth billions of dollars this year.
Source (The New Arab Newspaper, Edited)
