Muscat: During the specified period, traditional commercial banks in Oman witnessed a notable uptick in credit issuance, with the total balance of credit granted by banks increasing by 1.8 per cent. Particularly impressive was the growth in credit extended to the private sector, which surged by 2.6 per cent, reaching RO 20.1 billion by January 2024.

Investments by these banks also saw significant growth, with total investments in securities soaring by 28.1 per cent to approximately RO 5.7 billion by the end of January 2024. Notably, investments in foreign securities experienced a remarkable increase of 156.3 per cent, reaching RO 2.4 billion, while investments in government development bonds saw a 15 per cent decrease, settling at RO 1.8 billion.

On the liabilities side, total deposits with traditional commercial banks surged by 12.3 per cent, totalling RO 24.1 billion by January 2024. This increase was driven by various factors, including a 0.3 per cent rise in government deposits, a substantial 60 per cent increase in public sector institution deposits, and a noteworthy 10.5 per cent increase in private sector deposits, which accounted for 66 per cent of the total deposits with these banks.