Bank credit to private sector in Oman grows 4.8% to OMR19.9bn

Muscat: An analysis of the activities of traditional commercial banks indicated the continued growth of credit in the Sultanate of Oman. The total credit granted by commercial banks increased by 5.6 percent, while credit extended to the private sector increased by 4.8 percent to reach OMR19.9 billion at the end of March 2023.

The report issued by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) indicated that the total investment of commercial banks in securities decreased by 14.6 percent to reach about OMR4.5 billion at the end of March 2023, while investment in government development bonds increased by 2.7 percent to reach OMR2.2 billion.

Regarding the investments of conventional banks in foreign securities, the CBO bulletin said that it increased by 23.7 percent to reach OMR900 million at the end of March 2023.

On the liabilities side, total deposits with conventional commercial banks increased by 3.4 percent to reach OMR22.2 billion, while government deposits with commercial banks increased by 9.4 percent to about OMR5.3 billion, and deposits of public sector institutions increased by 24.8. percent.

Private sector deposits decreased by 0.2 percent to reach OMR14.6 billion at the end of March 2023, constituting 65.9 percent of total deposits with conventional commercial banks.