Middle East and Central Asia > Oman

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International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept.
حققت سلطنة عُمان تحسنا ملحوظا في أساسيات اقتصادها. فقد تحسن مركز المالية العامة والمركز الخارجي تحسنا كبيرا، في حين يشهد النمو غير الهيدروكربوني انتعاشا في ظل انخفاض التضخم. كما زادت ثقة المستثمرين، مما يمهد الطريق لزيادة استثمارات القطاع الخاص. ويمكن لجهود لإصلاح المستمرة تعظيم المكاسب المتحققة من هذه الإنجازات، والمساعدة على تحقيق التحول الاقتصادي المستهدف على النحو الوارد في رؤية عُمان 2040.
International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept.
This 2024 Article IV Consultation highlights that supported by favorable hydrocarbon revenues and steadfast reform efforts, Oman’s economy continues to expand amidst low inflation. Fiscal and external surpluses continued in 2024 and are expected over the medium term. The banking sector remains sound. Profitability has recovered to pre-pandemic levels, capital and liquidity buffers are ample, while asset quality remains strong. Banks’ net foreign assets turned positive by end of 2023 for the first time since 2014. The authorities continue pursuing prudent fiscal management, amidst the successful rollout of the social protection law. The 2025 budget is set to preserve fiscal discipline, further lowering the nonhydrocarbon primary deficit, while maintaining spending on social safety nets broadly unchanged relative to 2024. The banking sector is sound, amidst continued efforts to strengthen regulatory and supervisory frameworks. Sustained implementation of reforms under Oman Vision 2040 will be key to achieving sustainable, job rich, and private sector-led nonhydrocarbon growth. The new social protection law has been successfully rolled out. Labor market reforms are ongoing, supported by the new labor law.
Charlotte Gardes-Landolfini
,
William Oman
,
Jamie Fraser
,
Mariza Montes de Oca Leon
, and
Bella Yao
The economy is embedded in, and dependent on, nature. Yet economic activity is degrading nature at an unprecedented pace. Interacting with climate change, nature loss and transformation generates significant threats to the global economy and financial system. However, work on the implications of nature-related risks for macroeconomic and financial sector policies remains at an early stage. This note seeks to contribute to this emerging policy space in three main ways: (i) it proposes a conceptual framework for understanding nature-related risks by mapping out macroeconomic transmission channels, emphasizing their impact on the economy and financial systems through “double materiality;” (ii) it conducts empirical analysis, finding that nearly 38 percent of bank loans of the 100 largest global banks are to harmful subsidies-dependent sectors and 44 percent are exposed to conservation areas under the Global Biodiversity Framework, and that industries most exposed to nature degradation are not well prepared to manage these risks; and (iii) it discusses takeaways for macroeconomic and financial sector policies and frameworks.
International Monetary Fund. Strategy, Policy, & Review Department
This guidance note provides operational guidance on the Fund’s engagement with small developing states (SDS). It highlights the unique economic characteristics and constraints facing SDS, notably in a more shock-prone world. Building on advice that applies to the full membership, the note explains how the characteristics of SDS shape Fund surveillance, financial support and program design, capacity development (CD), and collaboration with other institutions and donors. The note updates the previous version that was published in December 2017.
Abdullah Alhassan
and
Dalia Aita
Fiscal risks are multifaceted in Oman and their potential impact on the fiscal position could be significant. Identification, monitoring, transparent reporting, and effective risk management of fiscal risks are a key component of a sound medium-term fiscal framework and paramount in underpinning fiscal credibility and the sustainability of public finances. This note revisits the exposure of Oman’s fiscal position to an array of potential risks, zooming in on the impact of oil price volatility and potential risks stemming from state-owned enterprises. It documents actions taken by Omani policymakers to mitigate the impact of fiscal risks and provides further recommendations on fiscal risk disclosure and management.
International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept.
This paper on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) discusses economic prospects and policy priorities for the GCC countries. A comprehensive package of policies should be implemented to respond to near-term shocks and uncertainty and to firmly address medium- and long-term challenges. In the near term, fiscal policy should remain prudent, avoiding procyclical spending and using the windfall from higher oil prices to rebuild buffers. Targeted and temporary fiscal measures could be undertaken to respond to shocks, if they materialize. In the medium term, GCC countries should continue pursuing fiscal consolidation consistent with ensuring intergenerational equity and sustainability, supported by a credible rules-based medium-term fiscal framework. Continued financial sector reforms are needed to support growth and stability. Structural policies should continue focusing on diversifying the economies away from hydrocarbon. Reform efforts aimed at further enhancing product market regulations, labor markets, and governance will spur growth, as will efficient investments in digital and green initiatives to accelerate transformation and support energy transition. The industrial policy should be carefully calibrated and not substitute for structural reforms while minimizing related inefficiencies.
Charlotte Gardes-Landolfini
,
Pierpaolo Grippa
,
William Oman
, and
Sha Yu
The transition to a low-carbon economy, which is needed to mitigate climate change and meet the Paris Agreement temperature goals, has been affected by the supply chain and energy supply disruptions that originated during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the subsequent energy crisis and exacerbation of geopolitical tensions. These developments, and the broader context of the ongoing “polycrisis,” can affect future decarbonization scenarios. This reflects three main factors: (1) pullbacks in climate mitigation policies and increased carbon lock-in in fossil fuel infrastructure and policymaking; (2) the decreasing likelihood of continuous cost reduction in renewable energy technologies; and (3) the likely intensification of macroeconomic shocks amid increasing geoeconomic fragmentation, and the associated policy responses. In this context, the note assesses the implications of the polycrisis for hypothetical scenarios used to assess climate-related financial risks. Following an analysis of the channels through which these effects are likely to materialize over short- and long-term horizons and some policy implications, the note proposes potential adjustments to the design of the climate scenarios used by financial institutions, central banks, and financial sector supervisors and regulators within their risk management frameworks.
Etienne Espagne
,
William Oman
,
Jean-François Mercure
,
Romain Svartzman
,
Ulrich Volz
,
Hector Pollitt
,
Gregor Semieniuk
, and
Emanuele Campiglio
This paper analyzes the cross-border risks that could result from a decarbonization of the world economy. We develop a typology of cross-border risks and their respective channels. Our qualitative and quantitative scenario analysis suggests that the mid-transition – a period during which fossil-fuel and low-carbon energy systems co-exist and transform at a rapid pace – could have profound stability and resilience implications for global trade and the international financial system.
International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept.
GCC policymakers have managed to quickly mitigate the economic impact of the twin COVID-19 and oil price shock. Commodity prices have surged, and the outlook is more positive for GCC countries, with new challenges linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and tighter global financial conditions expected to have a limited impact on GCC economies. While GCC countries have overall benefited from higher, albeit volatile hydrocarbon prices, numerous risks still cloud the outlook—notably a slowdown in the global economy. In this context, the reform momentum established during the low oil price years should be maintained—irrespective of the level of hydrocarbon prices.
International Monetary Fund. Middle East and Central Asia Dept.
This 2022 Article IV Consultation discusses Oman’s strong vaccination efforts have allowed for the relaxation of all social distancing restrictions, and the economic recovery is gaining traction. Uncertainties continue to cloud the outlook, with downside risks dominating in the short run. Reinforcing fiscal sustainability over the medium term, as envisaged under the Medium-Term Fiscal Plan, requires further revenue and expenditure measures. The exchange rate peg continues to serve Oman well. Efforts to strengthen the monetary transmission mechanism and establish the treasury single account should be carefully coordinated to maintain adequate banking system liquidity. Prudential rules should be restored to pre-pandemic levels as the impact of the pandemic declines. Close monitoring of banks’ asset quality remains essential. Steadfast implementation of reforms under Vision 2040 is needed to foster strong, job-rich, private sector-led growth. This would require enhancing labor market flexibility, improving the business environment, advancing state-owned-enterprises reforms, leveraging digitalization, and tackling climate challenges.