OMAN GROK Daily News – Excerpts from International Media Reports
[Links to full articles were active on the date posted here]
Indian amnesty seekers in Oman asked to report for finger printing [May 23]
“An Indian social worker in Oman has appealed to amnesty seekers to complete the finger printing formalities by May 31, the deadline given by the Manpower Ministry in Oman for overstaying expatriates to leave the country without paying any penalties. “A total of over 21,000 have registered at the embassy so far,” P M Jabir, Community Welfare Secretary at the Indian Social Club, said in a press release. Jabir is at the forefront in coordinating with the embassy and amnesty seeking blue collar workers. “It is mandatory to complete the fingerprinting before they can exit the country and that would also make the Indian embassy’s task to process each case faster. “We request all concerned people to come forward at the earliest,” he appealed. “Even if we assume some duplication in the registration, the figure would be approximately twenty thousand,” Jabir said..” [Complete report]
Oman reports large fiscal surplus in Q1 [May 23]
“Strong crude prices along with higher oil production allowed Oman to record a large budget surplus in the first quarter of 2010 despite an increase in investments and other expenditures, official data showed yesterday.
Spending during January-March stood at RO1.574 billion (Dh15.04bn) and revenue at RO1.996bn, creating a surplus of RO421.2 million, the Omani Ministry of Economy said in its April bulletin. The surplus is compared to a deficit of about RO16.6m in the first quarter of 2009, according to the report. A breakdown showed the surplus was achieved as a result of a sharp rise in the Gulf country’s oil revenues, which more than doubled to RO1.425bn in the first quarter of this year from nearly RO709.2 million in the first quarter of 2009. Gas revenue edged up by about 2.2 per cent to RO219m from RO215m, while customs revenue surged by about 26 per cent. By contrast, the report showed a 51.7 per cent plunge in corporate income tax and a decline of about 30.5 per cent in capital revenues..” [Complete report]
