Saturday 20 / June / 2026
Muscat: The main index of the Muscat Stock Exchange declined by 52 points during the week, affected by the decline of many leading stocks amid selling pressures with the start of the subscription to the Oman India Fertilizer Company (OMIFCO). The company is offering 25 percent of its capital for public subscription, equivalent to 1.67 billion shares at a price of 156 baisa for individual investors and in a price range between 146 and 156 baisa for institutions.
Investors in the Muscat Stock Exchange are seeking to provide additional liquidity for the new subscription by selling a number of shares in which they have made gains during the past period. This has put pressure on the main index and sector indices. The main index of the Muscat Stock Exchange closed at 7,582 points, declining for the third week in a row. The industrial sector index recorded a decline of 47 points, the services sector index declined by 34 points, and the Sharia index fell to 601 points, recording a decline of about 10 points.
In contrast, the financial sector index managed to rise for the fourth consecutive week, closing at 13,053 points, up 19 points, benefiting from the rise in shares of Bank Muscat, Oman Arab Bank, Bank Nizwa, Ahli Bank, and a number of shares of investment companies listed in the price index sample.
Omani individual investors turned to selling in during the week’s trading, with their sales accounting for 11.4 percent of the total trading value, compared to purchases of 9.4 percent of the trades.
Trading data issued by the Muscat Stock Exchange indicated an increase in sales by Gulf and foreign investment institutions, which constituted 8.4 percent and 2.9 percent respectively of the total trading value. This was against purchases of 6.7 percent by Gulf investment institutions and 0.3 percent by foreign investment institutions, while local investment funds and institutions sought to absorb the excess sales and inject additional liquidity into trading.
The week also saw four trading days, with the stock exchange closed on Thursday for the new Hijri year. Trading value reached OMR139.3 million, compared to OMR191.4 million in the week before, registering a decline of 27 percent. The number of transactions executed fell by 24.4 percent from 41,000 to 31,514.
The total market capitalisation of the Muscat Stock Exchange rose during the week to 36.70 billion, recording weekly gains of OMR47.1 million, benefiting from the rise witnessed by the bonds and sukuk market. Their market value rose to exceed OMR5.41 billion, recording weekly gains of OMR122.7 million, benefiting from the listing of the eleventh issue of sovereign sukuk with a value of OMR120 million and the listing of free sukuk for Bank Nizwa with a value of OMR10 million.
During the week, investors focused their trading on shares of Bank Muscat, Bank Sohar International, and OQ Basic Industries, which topped the list of most traded companies in terms of trading value. Bank Muscat saw trades worth OMR39.3 million, representing 28.2 percent of the total trading value. Bank Sohar International came in second with trades worth OMR24.6 million, while OQ Basic Industries came in third with trades worth OMR19.1 million.
The week also saw the prices of 31 securities rise, compared to 37 securities whose prices declined, and 26 securities that remained unchanged at their previous levels. Asyad Shipping shares led the gainers, rising by 8.4 percent and closing at 283 baisa. Salalah Mills shares rose by 7.1 percent and closed at 600 baisa. Oman Educational and Training Investments shares rose by 6.2 percent and closed at 1.700 riyals. Oman Chlorine shares recorded an increase of 5.7 percent and closed at 185 baisa. Oman Cables Industry shares rose by 5 percent and closed at omr3.100.
The shares of Al Hassan Engineering, Muscat Insurance, Oman & Emirates Investment Holding, Fincorp Financial Centre and Voltamp Energy were among the biggest losers, recording declines ranging between 14.2 percent and 6.2 percent.
