The Sultanate is among the top 10 markets that have most rapidly improved their trade growth potential over the past decade, according to new research from Standard Chartered.

According to the Standard Chartered Trade 20 Index, which identifies 20 rising stars of global trade, “Oman is showing progress in terms of both economic diversity and trade readiness. It is implementing a diversification strategy that aims to focus on non-oil sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, tourism, fishing and mining, capitalising on its natural resources. The government has also been making efforts to reduce the barriers to doing business, streamlining the start-up process and making border clearance easier.”

Credit: Standard Chartered

The study examines 66 markets across the world and has determined each market’s potential for trade growth over the past 10 years by taking into accounts factors such as economic dynamism, trade readiness and export diversity, with Oman coming in second in the overall ranking.

While according to the study, trade leaders such as China and India continue to make progress and improve upon their potential, Middle East countries have made remarkable progress, bolstered by improvements in diversifying their exports and managing to successfully steer the economy away from reliance on oil.

The Trade 20 Index, also features UAE and Bahrain among the nations that shown the most progress. Given the government’s focus on building its infrastructure, UAE finds itself at the top of a list of Middle Eastern countries having made quicker progress than any other Middle East nation. Bahrain scores in terms of diversification improvements and large developments in its manufacturing, finance and services sectors.