Credit extended by banks in Oman increases by 12.7%

Muscat: An analysis of the activities of traditional commercial banks during the period (July 2025-July 2026) indicates the continued growth of credit in the Sultanate of Oman. The total credit granted by banks recorded an increase of 12.7 percent while credit granted to the private sector increased by 11.9 percent to reach OMR23.8 billion by the end of July 2026.Data released by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) showed that the total investments of conventional commercial banks in securities witnessed an increase of 26.2 percent, reaching approximately OMR7.3 billion by the end of July 2026. Investment in government development bonds (GDBs) increased by 20.4 percent compared to the same period last year, reaching OMR2.5 billion, while investments in foreign securities increased by 30.8 percent to reach OMR2.7 billion by the end of July 2026.On the liabilities side, total deposits with conventional commercial banks recorded an increase of 14.6 percent to reach OMR29.3 billion by the end of July 2026.Within total deposits, government deposits with commercial banks recorded an increase of 9.2 percent to reach approximately OMR6.4 billion, while deposits of public sector institutions increased by 57.9 percent to reach approximately OMR2.6 billion during the same period.Private sector deposits recorded an increase of 13.9 percent to reach OMR19.3 billion in July 2026, constituting 66.1 percent of total deposits with conventional commercial banks.