Economy - overview:
Oman is a middle-income economy in the Middle East with notable oil and gas resources, a substantial trade surplus, and low inflation. Sustained high oil prices in recent years have helped build Oman's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. Oman joined the World Trade Organization in November 2000 and continues to liberalize its markets. To reduce unemployment and limit dependence on foreign labor, the government is encouraging the replacement of foreign expatriate workers with local workers. Oman actively seeks private foreign investors, especially in the industrial, information technology, tourism, and higher education fields. Industrial development plans focus on gas resources, metal manufacturing, petrochemicals, and international transshipment ports.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$43.88 billion (2006 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$27.23 billion (2006 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
6.5% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$14,100 (2006 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2.6%
industry: 38.8%
services: 58.7% (2006 est.)

Labor force:
920,000 (2002 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

Unemployment rate:
15% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:
NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2% (2006 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
14.2% of GDP (2006 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $14.33 billion
expenditures: $12.81 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)

Public debt:
4.5% of GDP (2006 est.)

Agriculture - products:
dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish

Industries:
crude oil production and refining, natural and liquefied natural gas (LNG) production; construction, cement, copper, steel, chemicals, optic fiber

Industrial production growth rate:
5.9% (2006 est.)

Electricity - production:
14.33 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - consumption:
13.33 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2004)

Oil - production:
769,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption:
60,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - exports:
721,000 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day

Oil - proved reserves:
4.7 billion bbl (2006 est.)

Natural gas - production:
17.2 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
6.77 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
10.43 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
829.1 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)

Current account balance:
$7.097 billion (2006 est.)

Exports:
$24.73 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Exports - commodities:
petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles

Exports - partners:
China 21.6%, South Korea 19.3%, Japan 14.2%, Thailand 12.6%, UAE 7.1%, Taiwan 4.1% (2005)

Imports:
$10.29 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants

Imports - partners:
UAE 22.4%, Japan 15.7%, UK 7.7%, US 6.7%, Germany 5.8%, India 4.2% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$4.908 billion (2006 est.)

Debt - external:
$4.259 billion (2006 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$76.4 million (1995)

Currency (code):
Omani rial (OMR)

Exchange rates:
Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (2006), 0.3845 (2005), 0.3845 (2004), 0.3845 (2003), 0.3845 (2002)