RIYADH: Foreign direct investment in Oman rose 8.7 percent year on year by the end of the first quarter of 2026 to 32.19 billion Omani rials ($83.7 billion), according to preliminary official data.
Figures from the National Centre for Statistics and Information showed a continued concentration of foreign capital in the sultanate’s energy sector, while manufacturing and financial intermediation also recorded growth in investment value during the period.
The first-quarter figures underline Oman’s efforts to maintain investment momentum as Gulf economies compete to attract long-term foreign capital into energy, industry, and logistics, as well as financial services and other sectors linked to economic diversification.
Elsewhere in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia’s first-quarter FDI inflows rose 2.4 percent to SR26.6 billion ($7 billion), while Qatar’s National Planning Council said inward FDI positions increased 2 percent to 165.4 billion Qatari riyals ($45.30 billion) at the end of 2025.
The UAE attracted $48.24 billion in FDI in 2025, up about 6 percent from a year earlier, ranking ninth globally, according to the UN Conference on Trade and Development.
“The preliminary statistics issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information showed that investment flows during the first quarter of 2026 amounted to about 2.56 billion Omani rials,” a report by the Oman News Agency said.
Oil and gas extraction remained the dominant destination for foreign investment, with FDI rising 9.5 percent year on year to 25.88 billion rials. Investment flows into the sector totaled 2.23 billion rials during the quarter.
Manufacturing ranked second, with foreign direct investment reaching 2.87 billion rials, an increase of 5.4 percent. Investment flows into manufacturing stood at 146.7 million rials.
Financial intermediation followed, with 1.56 billion rials in foreign direct investment, up 9.6 percent, while investment flows into the sector amounted to 137.7 million rials.
UK remains top investor
By country, the UK remained the largest foreign direct investor in Oman at the end of the first quarter, with investments totaling 16.88 billion rials, up 9.9 percent.
Direct investment from the US rose 10 percent to 8.69 billion rials, while Kuwaiti investment increased 4.6 percent to 1.44 billion rials. Chinese investment rose 9.3 percent to 901.5 million rials.
