$300mln Oman-Singapore joint investment fund set up

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Muscat – Oman and India established a joint investment fund during His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik’s state visit to India on Saturday.

Abdul Salam bin Muhammad al Murshidi, Chairman of Oman Investment Authority (OIA), stated that the third such fund is a result of the success of two earlier joint funds with India, which reaped good returns from successful investments in a number of sectors, including medical care and pharmacy, chemical and industrial technologies, automobiles, information technology, commodities, defence, aerospace, mining and the retail sector.

He added that OIA is targeting several vital sectors for partnership and investment in the Indian market, as the growth of the Indian economy is expected to reach 6.3% in 2023-2024.

According to Indian media reports, Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra stated that the Oman-India Joint Investment Fund, a 50-50 joint venture between State Bank of India and OIA, aims to bolster economic ties.

“This fund would be worth US$300mn, essentially channeling investments into the fastest-growing sectors of the Indian economy,” Kwatra informed.

The fund’s two earlier tranches, valued at US$100mn and US$200mn, respectively, laid the groundwork for a strong economic alliance. “The initial two tranches captured the underlying belief between the two countries and leadership, forging a very strong base of economic ties through direct capital investments in the growing sectors of the Indian economy,” Kwatra added.

The announcement of the third tranche of the Oman-India joint fund not only signifies a substantial financial commitment but also cements the long-term vision of both nations to deepen economic and cultural ties.

The size of commercial exchange between Oman and India stood at RO1.4bn at the end of the third quarter of 2023. The volume of Omani exports to India was RO699.2mn mostly in oil, minerals, LNG, polyethylene, propylate, aluminum and urea. The volume of Omani imports from India amounted to RO747.883mn mostly in rice, motor fuel, wheat, ignition control of vehicles and iron ore.

The volume of investments from India in Oman in 2023 at the end of June amounted to RO378.4mn. The number of Indian companies investing in Oman by the end of 2022 was 1,744 with an investment volume of RO281mn. These investments were distributed in several sectors, including industry, construction, trade, transportation, communications, oil and gas, mining, quarrying, education, agriculture, fisheries, tourism and health.