Economy on track, believe 70% of millionaires in Oman

MUSCAT: Millionaires in Oman are optimistic about the Sultanate’s economic prospects, according to a report.

A majority of the wealthy Omani residents surveyed expect the country’s economy to be heading in the right direction says a report by Cluttons, the global property consultants.

Half of those surveyed believe that the country’s economy is on the rise, which makes Omani millionaires the most positive about their national economic growth when compared with others in the Gulf Cooperation Council.

The report surveyed 127 high net worth individuals (HNWI) from across the GCC, including 30 from Oman, each of whom currently has or intends in the future to make an investment worth USD 1 million in international property.

Global outlook

Even though most of those who took part said the global outlook was gloomy, nearly two thirds of them intended to acquire a property abroad in 2016. Furthermore, only 12 per cent of GCC HNWI plan to liquidate their properties outside.

“Gulf investors are in no hurry to liquidate their properties for a variety of reasons especially pertaining to London. Some have taken the foreign exchange hit from the Sterling tumble at the hands of the Brexit referendum while most others still see London as a lucrative market considering its history of providing exponential returns in capital and rental terms,” explained Faisal Durrani, Head of research at Cluttons.

Lead the GCC

The report also revealed that HNWI in Oman lead the GCC countries in real estate portfolios outside the country, which accounts for 63 per cent of their total, and is predicted to grow to 71 per cent by 2020.

While the report revealed London as the favoured investment location for GCC millionaires, Oman’s HNWI preferred Indian cities as the top investment location. The report also highlighted New York and Singapore as priority locations for real estate investments.

According to Durrani, recent measures taken by the Indian government to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) could be an important factor in making India an ideal investment destination.

Oman’s real estate market is stable due to the steady growth of population along with several development projects to promote tourism in Oman being the driving factors.

“The upcoming integrated tourism complex (ITC) projects like Port Sultan Qaboos and current high performing ones like Al Mouj Muscat along with the government plans to diversify are propelling the demand,” according to Philip Paul, Head of Cluttons Oman.

Takes its toll

He added that even though larger residential complexes with excellent facilities have flourished, the recent economic downturn has taken its toll on smaller independent residential properties that have seen supply overtaking demand.