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Oman

June 7, 2026

Muscat 3:48 pm

36°C

Oil tankers and high-speed crafts anchored near the Strait of Hormuz, Muscat, Oman, March 30, 2026.

Analysis

Oman’s wartime paradox: Diplomatic losses, economic gains

Experts see Oman gaining long-term economic benefits from the US-Israel-Iran war even as the conflict bruises Muscat’s diplomatic standing.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

AFP via Getty Images

Oman denies disruption at key oil hub after reported drone attack

Oman’s state-owned oil company rebuffed reports about the suspension of oil loading operations at a key port following an alleged drone attack.

Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

How Iran war created unexpected economic beneficiaries

The Strait of Hormuz crisis is reshaping global energy and trade flows, creating opportunities for economies far beyond the Middle East.

Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi (L) and US President Donald Trump pose during a summit on Gaza in Sharm el-Sheikh on October 13, 2025.

Trump threatens to 'blow up' Oman as US-Iran talks stall

“Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we will have to blow them up,” Trump said in surprising comments on Wednesday.

Latest News

Iran’s Hormuz authority declares control over ports in UAE, Oman: What to know

AFP via Getty Images

Oman enters Gulf AI race with new special economic zone in Muscat

Haitham AL-SHUKAIRI / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Hostage to Hormuz, can Gulf rewire future energy flows to bypass Iran’s chokepoint?

A police speed boat patrols the port as oil tankers and high speed crafts sit anchored at Muscat Anchorage near the Strait of Hormuz on March 30, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

TotalEnergies reaped more than $1B profit from Iran war: What to know

Jean-Christophe VERHAEGEN / AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Karen Young

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy

View of a pier in downtown Muscat, Oman. (Photo by: Edwin Remsberg/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Oman’s sovereign wealth fund under pressure

Ahead of the prospect of a high budget deficit in 2020, assets held by the State General Reserve Fund (SGRF) plunged by about a third to $14.3 billion.

Intel: Trump calls on Qatar to work toward resolving Gulf dispute

President Donald Trump has asked Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to take steps to resolve the ongoing dispute with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE, which blockaded Qatar in 2017.

For Gulf, South Asia countries, worst is yet to come

The pandemic is expected to be especially hard on migrant workers in the Mideast and South Asia, as it has left many of them unemployed and struggling to return home to an uncertain future.

Is Oman’s model of governance about to shift?

Oman's debts are piling up as oil prices crash, putting at risk its wide-reaching social welfare system.

An airline employee walks through Reagan National Airport during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Washington, U.S., April 5, 2020. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC2KYF955PLJ

‘All hands on deck:’ Middle East embassies inundated with citizens stranded in US

Middle East embassies are overwhelmed with calls from citizens trying to return home as COVID-19 spreads in the United States.

U.S. Secretary of State?Mike?Pompeo meets with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq at al-Alam palace in Muscat, Oman on February 21, 2020. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via REUTERS - RC225F97S5EO

Oman’s foreign policy after Sultan Qaboos

As Sultan Haitham’s reign begins, Omanis hold fast to the Gulf state’s long-standing commitment to dialogue and regional diplomacy.

Yemen’s Hadi hopes new governor calms Mahra tensions

In the wake of clashes between Saudi forces and local tribesmen in Mahra province, Yemen’s president appointed a new governor in the hope of preventing further violence.

Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said is sworn in before the royal family council in Muscat, Oman January 11, 2020. REUTERS/Sultan Al Hasani TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC2MDE9MAR1J

Will ties with Iran change under Oman’s new sultan?

A new sultan sitting on the throne in Muscat has sparked questions about the future of traditionally cordial ties Tehran held with the late peacemaker, Sultan Qaboos bin Said.

A tourist lifts up a boy as they visit waterfalls at Ayn Athum in Salalah, Dhofar province, Oman August 23, 2016. Picture taken August 23, 2016. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah - D1BETYFAUFAC

Is tourism the antidote to youth unemployment in Oman?

Omani officials aim to create over 500,000 jobs in the tourism sector by 2040.

Members of a Palestinian family sit around a fire to warm themselves at the site of their destroyed house, on a rainy day in the southern Gaza Strip January 10, 2020. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC24DE9KGKN8

Islamic Jihad undermines shaky Gaza cease-fire with rocket barrage

Israel, Egypt holding Hamas accountable for all attacks from Gaza; the wisdom of Sultan Qaboos.

Internally displaced people gather to collect food aid from an ICRC aid distribution centre in Bajil, Yemen December 13, 2018, 2018. Picture taken December 13, 2018. REUTERS/Abduljabbar Zeyad - RC14633000A0

Oman’s humanitarian aid to Yemen also pragmatic

Providing assistance to Yemenis requires Oman to maintain a low profile and strike a political balance with its giant neighbor to the northwest, Saudi Arabia.

Sell-off in Oman reveals privatization with regional characteristics

Some Middle East countries in need of cash, such as Oman, are selling assets to Chinese and Malaysian state-owned entities.