Oman pumped 85.358mn barrels of oil (crude and condensates) in the first quarter of 2014, marking a 1% y/y increase, lifted by new exploration and modernisation of oil infrastructure, the statistics office said. Crude oil production rose 3.5% y/y to 77.583mn, whereas that of condensates dropped 18.3% y/y to 7.775mn in Q1.
The average price of Omani oil fell 1% y/y to USD 105.96 per barrel in Q1. The non-OPEC sultanate pumped an average of 948,400 barrels a day during the quarter, up 1% y/y%.
In Q1, Oman’s total oil exports shrank 4.9% y/y to 71.166mn barrels (83% of total output). China topped the list of importers of Omani oil in Q1 2014, buying 49.876mn barrels (up 19%). Taiwan followed with 8.797mn barrels (up 9% y/y) and Japan ranked third with 4.897mn barrels (down 42% y/y).
Hydrocarbons are Oman’s main source of budget income.
Falling revenue and rising spending continues to weigh on Oman’s fiscal parameters as the budget surplus narrowed 35% y/y to OMR 414mn (USD 1.08bn) in the first two months of 2014, according to the latest available data from the statistics office. Total revenue fell 5.3% y/y to OMR 2.04bn on dropping net oil income, whereas gross spending increased 7.1% to OMR 1.63bn on higher current sending, mainly on salaries.
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