For the third consecutive year, India retained its position as the second largest destination for Omani non-exports in 2011, the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) said in its Annual Report for last year.

Non-oil exports of Omani exports soared 27.7 per cent to reach a value of RO 413.1 million in 2011, from RO 323.4 million a year earlier. India has been a growing importer of Omani non-oil goods, receiving RO 219.4 million worth of merchandise in 2009.

As a percentage of total Omani non-oil exports, India accounted for a 13.6 per cent share last year, up from 13.2 per cent in 2010 and 11.9 per cent a year earlier. Rising exports of chemical products contributed to the growth in exports to India, the apex bank said.

But dominating the league table of major destinations for Omani non-oil exports was the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which received RO 450.1 million worth of goods in 2011, representing a 14.6 per cent share of the total. Exports to the UAE fell significantly from the previous year’s high of RO 573.6 million, largely due to lower exports of mineral products.

China, in third place, imported RO 331.8 million worth of Omani non-oil goods in 2011, which was sharply up from the previous year’s figure of RO 185.2 million. The Asian economic giant, together with the UAE, India and Saudi Arabia, accounted for 47.2 per cent of total non-oil exports of Omani origin in 2011.

Interestingly, Kuwait registered a four-fold increase in exports from the Sultanate, boosted largely by inflows of chemical products. The tiny oil-rich state, which imported RO 109.million worth of Omani non-oil goods, is rapidly emerging as an important trading partner of Oman, the Central Bank said.

Fellow GCC member Saudi Arabia also retained its position as the fourth largest market for Omani goods for the last three years. Non-oil imports from the Sultanate jumped to RO 239.6 million in value last year, up from RO 182.6 million in 2010.

Significantly, markets in markets in south-east Asia and the far-east have also been rapidly opening up to Omani merchandise. “Oman is taking major strides in diversifying its export markets in recent years. A shift in the share from traditional markets in the Middle East to new markets like Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan is clearly discernible,” the Central Bank noted in its Annual Report.

In Europe, exports to the Netherlands more than doubled to RO 66.6 million 2011, which augurs well for the future in terms of diversification, the CBO said.

The value of non-oil exports of Omani origin increased considerably by 23.9 per 1340806675052547900 cent to RO 3.033 billion in 2011, the apex bank said, adding that re-exports also increased by 17 per cent to RO 2,247.6 million in 2011 from RO 1,921.7 million in 2010.

Meanwhile, total merchandise exports (comprising crude oil, refined oil, liquefied natural gas, non-oil exports, and re-exports) increased by 28.7 per cent to RO 18.106 billion in 2011 from RO 14.073 billion in 2010. The surge in exports of crude oil and LNG during the year resulted mainly from higher realization of oil prices in 2011. While crude oil exports increased 33.1 per cent to RO 10.659 billion in 2011, LNG exports rose 24.9 per cent to RO 1.469 billion during the same year, according to the Annual Report.