Oman

Sultan Qaboos’ legacy of peace looks safe for now

12 January 2020

Oman’s iconic leader is dead after a 50-year reign. The risk of upheaval has been eased by the appointment of his cousin, and regional tensions that have subsided in recent days. But the longer-term scope for weak finances to hit Muscat’s role as a key Gulf mediator remains.

Gulf’s long-serving ruler is ailing at a bad time

9 January 2020

Oman’s Sultan Qaboos is ill. For 50 years the iconic leader has positioned his realm as a neutral Gulf player. If he dies as the Iran crisis rages, an opaque succession process and shaky finances could deprive a fractious region of a key backchannel when it’s most needed.

Kuwait’s strength could be a weakness

17 January 2017

The oil-rich sheikhdom is planning its first dollar debt sale. It should be a hit: Kuwait has a good fiscal record and vast foreign assets. Yet other Gulf states are weaker, raising the risk of devaluations or euro zone-style bailouts. The strongest may end up bearing the burden.

Oil price band of comfort is precariously narrow

10 May 2012

It only takes a $20-a-barrel swing to move markets from fretting about the release of emergency reserves to worrying about top producers falling into fiscal deficits. Hard-to-cut higher spending by a growing number of big exporters may make the concerns permanent.