Oman Promotes its Products Domestically, Globally

Oman Promotes its Products Domestically, Globally
TT

Oman Promotes its Products Domestically, Globally

Oman Promotes its Products Domestically, Globally

Asila bint Salim Al Samsami, undersecretary of the Oman’s Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and Investment Promotion for Investment Promotion, has revealed the ministry’s intention to launch an initiative to promote the Omani products and increase their competitiveness in domestic and global markets.

She stressed the importance of understanding the behavior of consumers and ensuring that Omani products meet their demands.

This facilitates the expansion of Omani products to various foreign markets, while complying with international standards.

She added that the ministry is uniting all efforts to promote the Omani product.

A circular by the Ministry of Finance mandated that government contracts valued at RO 10,000 or lower must be awarded to small and medium Omani enterprises (SMEs) registered with the Public Authority for SME Development (Riyada).

This is in line with the Economic Stimulus Plan approved by Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, which seeks to aid Oman’s economic recovery, as well as strengthen national development, it said.

“The government is making great efforts to support SMEs to achieve added value to the national economy, contribute to economic diversification, support innovation and use modern technologies, and to stress the importance of concerted efforts among all units of the state’s administrative apparatus to implement this.”

It urged internal audit bureaus in ministries, government units, public bodies, institutions and state companies to ensure strict compliance with this directive.

Exceptions may be granted on reasonable grounds by relevant government bodies, the circular added.



US Economy Grows at 3.1% Pace in 3rd Quarter, an Upgrade from Previous Estimate

FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024.  REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
TT

US Economy Grows at 3.1% Pace in 3rd Quarter, an Upgrade from Previous Estimate

FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024.  REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A sailboat passes by the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor, in New York City, US, September 20, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

The American economy grew at a healthy 3.1% annual clip from July through September, propelled by vigorous consumer spending and an uptick in exports, the government said in an upgrade to its previous estimate.
Third-quarter growth in US gross domestic product — the economy's output of goods and services — accelerated from the April-July rate of 3% and continued to look sturdy despite high interest rates, the Commerce Department said Thursday. GDP growth has now topped 2% in eight of the last nine quarters.
Consumer spending, which accounts for about two-thirds of US economic activity, expanded at a 3.7% pace, fastest since the first quarter of 2023 and an uptick from Commerce’s previous third-quarter estimate of 3.5%, The Associated Press reported.
Exports climbed 9.6%. Business investment grew a lackluster 0.8%, but investment in equipment expanded 10.8%. Spending and investment by the federal government jumped 8.9%, including a 13.9% surge in defense spending.
American voters were unimpressed by the steady growth under Democratic President Joe Biden. Exasperated by prices that remain 20% higher than they were when an inflationary surge began in early 2021, they chose last month to send Donald Trump back to the White House with Republican majorities in the House and Senate.
Trump will inherit an economy that looks healthy overall. The unemployment rate remains low at 4.2% even though it is up from the 53-year low 3.4% reached in April 2023. Inflation hit a four-decade high 9.1% in mid-2002. Eleven interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in 2022 and 2023 helped bring it down — to 2.7% last month. That is above the Fed's 2% target. But the central bank still felt comfortable enough with the progress against inflation to cut its benchmark rate Wednesday for the third time this year.
Within the GDP data, a category that measures the economy’s underlying strength rose at a solid 3.4% annual rate from July through September, an upgrade from the previous estimate and up from 2.7% in the April-June quarter. This category includes consumer spending and private investment but excludes volatile items like exports, inventories and government spending.
Wednesday’s report also contained some encouraging news on inflation. The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge — called the personal consumption expenditures index, or PCE — rose at just a 1.5% annual pace last quarter, down from 2.5% in the second quarter. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core PCE inflation was 2.2%, up modestly from the previous estimate but down from 2.8% in the April-June quarter.
Thursday's report was the Commerce Department's third and final look at third-quarter GDP. It will publish its initial estimate of October-December growth on Jan. 30.