Sunday 19 / July / 2026
Muscat: Private enterprises in the Sultanate of Oman generated more than OMR8.1 billion in value added during the first quarter of 2026, despite a modest decline in overall economic activity, according to the latest data released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
The data showed that the total value added of private enterprises declined by 1.7 percent to OMR8.1 billion during the January-March 2026 period, compared with OMR8.2 billion recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
The country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) also registered a 2.0 percent decline, falling to OMR10.293 billion in the first quarter of 2026 from OMR10.501 billion during the same period last year.
Despite the overall decline, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) continued to demonstrate resilience, recording positive growth in value added.
Micro-enterprises recorded the strongest performance, with value added increasing 6.2 percent to reach OMR841,200,000, compared to OMR792,400,000 in the first quarter of 2025.
Small enterprises followed with 5.2 percent growth, as their value added rose to OMR702,200,000, compared to OMR667,200,000 during the same period last year.
Meanwhile, medium enterprises posted 3.1 percent growth in value added, reaching OMR654,900,000, compared to OMR635,300,000 in the first quarter of 2025.
In contrast, large enterprises experienced a decline in value added, which fell 4.0 percent to OMR5,906.9 million compared to 6,152.6 million during the same period of the previous year.
The NCSI figures also showed continued growth in employment across active private enterprises, with the total workforce increasing by 0.9 percent to 1,822,317 workers in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 1,806,245 workers during the corresponding period last year.
Medium enterprises recorded the highest increase in employment, with their workforce expanding by 7.9 percent to 165,195 workers, up from 153,094 a year earlier.
Small enterprises ranked second, recording 6.3 percent growth in employment as the number of workers increased to 570,663, compared with 537,079 during the same period in 2025.
Employment in large enterprises also rose by 3.5 percent, reaching 453,708 workers, compared to 438,212 workers in the previous year.
However, micro-enterprises recorded a decline in employment, with the number of workers falling 6.7 percent to 632,751, down from 677,860 during the first quarter of 2025.
According to the NCSI, the number of active private enterprises in Oman declined marginally by 0.8 percent during the first quarter of 2026, reaching 265,918 enterprises, compared with 268,033 enterprises in the same period of the previous year.
Among different enterprise categories, medium enterprises registered the highest growth in numbers, increasing 6.7 percent to 1,987 enterprises, up from 1,862 in the first quarter of 2025.
Small enterprises grew by 4.8 percent, with their numbers rising to 31,369 from 29,932 during the same period last year.
The number of large enterprises also increased by 4.5 percent, reaching 762 enterprises, compared with 729 a year earlier.
In contrast, the number of micro-enterprises declined 1.6 percent to 231,800, compared with 235,510 in the first quarter of 2025.
The latest figures indicate that while Oman's overall economy experienced a modest slowdown during the first quarter of 2026, the country's micro, small and medium-sized enterprises continued to strengthen their contribution to economic activity, recording growth in value added, enterprise numbers and employment. Large enterprises, however, accounted for most of the decline in overall value added, reflecting softer performance in the broader economy.
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