Search results

The Omani ruler left Muscat on 8 July for what officials described as a private visit to Germany and the UK. He returned home almost seven weeks later on 24 August.

Germany-based chemicals company has OQ been owned by Oman since 2013, but the Gulf investor is now reportedly looking to sell its stake in the business, which has large debts and is at risk of falling into insolvency.

In late July, just as the UAE was wrapping up several of its latest bilateral free trade deals, a GCC delegation was in Ankara from 29-31 July for the first round of discussions on a free trade deal with Türkiye.  That was soon followed on 1 August by the official launch of negotiations on a free trade agreement between the GCC and Indonesia.

Oman’s plans for a fourth LNG train at the Qalhat Industrial Complex is an indication of the robust health of the regional LNG market and follows a trend already established in other Gulf producers of gas.

After years of minimal progress, plans to introduce personal income tax in Oman appear to be moving forward, with a draft law passed from the lower house of parliament to the upper house in late June. If it goes ahead, it will be the first income tax in the GCC and could provide a model for Muscat’s neighbours to follow.

Five members of the public and a policeman were killed when three Omani brothers fired on worshippers in the Ali Bin Abi Talib mosque in Muscat in mid-July; the attack was later claimed by Islamic State.

Sayyid Ali Bin Ghalib Al-Said will compete for the first time at the event in France this September and may be joined by his brother Sayyid Loay, who is still working his way through the qualification process

Assets under management at Oman’s sovereign wealth fund increased to $50bn by end-2023, on the back of an improved rate of return on OIA’s investments.

Former Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Shamkhani may once more be in charge of indirect talks with the US over the nuclear file, with Oman acting as the key intermediary.

Dubai has revived plans to turn Al-Maktoum International into the world’s largest airport, pointing to a huge projected upturn in regional carriers’ business in coming decades and the commercial emirate’s determination to counter the challenge posed by regional rivals.

After more than four years on the throne, Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq Al-Said is slowly and steadily remodelling Oman’s economy, while maintaining a tight grip on the political arena.

Under Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq Al-Said and his longstanding predecessor Sultan Qaboos, Oman has carved out a distinctive place in the Gulf. With fewer oil and gas resources than most of its neighbours, the sultanate has followed a more low-key path on the international stage, building up a reputation as an important mediator to reduce tensions between regional and international powers.

As the GCC region’s big economic powers vie for global business, Dubai is reviving plans to turn Al-Maktoum International into the world’s largest airport, not least preparing for the challenge posed by Saudi Arabia’s eye-watering aviation strategy. The Dubai megaproject’s revival comes as Riyadh pushes to grab a big slice of the international aviation market – if Saudi carriers can overcome the challenge of securing sufficient planes, pilots and passengers needed to meet the kingdom’s hugely ambitious plans.

Iranian officials have been engaged in a flurry of meetings and phone calls with GCC member states, in a sign that Tehran may be trying to leverage regional anger over the Gaza conflict to improve relations with its Arab neighbours.

State-owned Hydrom has awarded the first two GH2 projects from its second auction round launched in mid-2023, with one licence going to a British/French/Japanese consortium and another to an Australian/British group.