Oman's non-oil exports jump 10%

25/12/2025 04:32 AST

Driven by strong demand for Omani products from key regional and international markets, the sultanate's non-oil exports posted a robust growth of nearly 10% in the first 10 months of 2025, highlighting the sultanate's expanding trade footprint beyond hydrocarbons.

According to data released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) on Tuesday, Oman's total non-oil exports increased by 9.9% to RO5.612bn between January and October 2025, compared with RO5.106bn in the same period last year. The growth was largely driven by rising shipments to the UAE, Saudi Arabia and India.

Exports to the United Arab Emirates surged by almost 28% to RO1.07bn during the 10-month period, up from RO839mn a year earlier. Shipments to Saudi Arabia recorded an even sharper rise of 38.7%, reaching RO920mn compared with RO663mn in the corresponding period of 2024.

India also emerged as a strong market for Omani products, with non-oil exports rising 15% to RO597mn in the first 10 months of 2025, from RO519mn a year earlier.

NCSI data showed that the expansion in non-oil exports was broad-based across most of Oman's major trading partners, underlining the continued success of Omani exporters in expanding their global footprint. The United States, however, was a notable exception.

Exports to the US declined by 14.5% to RO294mn during the January-October period, down from RO345mn in the same period last year.

Non-oil exports to other countries recorded a solid increase of 6.3%, amounting to RO2.297bn in the first 10 months of 2025, compared with RO2.160bn a year earlier.

By product category, mineral product exports stood at RO1.415bn during the period, marking a decline of 5.2% from RO1.492bn in the same period of 2024. In contrast, exports of chemical products rose by 16.4% to RO755mn, up from RO649mn.

Exports of plastics and rubber fell by 7.3% to RO749mn, compared with RO808mn in the corresponding period last year. Base metals and related articles contributed RO1.191bn in export value, registering a healthy growth of 9.1% from RO1.092bn a year earlier.

Meanwhile, exports of electrical machinery and equipment surged by a sharp 143% to RO501mn, compared with RO206mn in the first 10 months of 2024.

Re-exports surge 11.6%
Oman's re-exports also recorded strong growth during the January-October period of this year. Total re-exports rose by 11.6% to RO1.612bn in the first 10 months of 2025, up from RO1.445bn in the same period last year.

The increase was largely driven by higher transhipment volumes to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the UK and the US.

Re-exports to the UAE grew by 7.7% to RO532mn, while shipments to Saudi Arabia surged by 237.8% to RO133mn, compared with RO39mn a year earlier.

Re-exports to the UK jumped sharply to RO179mn, up 350% from RO40mn in the same period of 2024. Meanwhile, re-exports to the United States increased by 21.6% to RO64mn from RO53mn.

Imports rise 6.8%
Oman's total merchandise imports increased by 6.8% to RO14.669bn during the January-October 2025 period, compared with RO13.741bn in the same period last year.

The UAE remained the sultanate's largest source of imports, with inbound shipments rising by 6.3% to RO3.491bn from RO3.284bn a year earlier.

Imports from China grew by 5.9% to RO1.556bn, up from RO1.469bn in the first 10 months of 2024. However, imports from Saudi Arabia and India declined by 9% and 5.5% to RO1.012bn and RO1.204bn, respectively. Imports from Kuwait also fell by 7.5% to RO1.257bn.

Imports from the rest of the world rose sharply by 17.3% to RO6.150bn during the period, compared with RO5.244bn a year earlier.

Muscat Daily