Oman and Saudi Arabia are seeking to promote integration and economic and industrial partnerships next Wednesday

The story in brief

Oman: Next Wednesday, the state of Salalah in the Dhofar Governorate will host the seventh meeting of Their Excellencies the heads of the Coordination Committee in the fields of economy, trade and industry emanating from the Omani-Saudi Coordination Council, with a number of officials and representatives of the concerned authorities from both sides, within the framework of joint efforts to enhance economic, commercial and industrial integration, and develop partnerships and initiatives that serve the common interests of the two brotherly countries. The Omani side in the meeting is chaired by His Excellency Engineer Ghaleb bin Saeed Al Mamari, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Trade and Industry and Investment Promotion for Trade and Industry and Chairman The Coordination Committee in the fields of economy, trade and industry from the Omani side, while the Saudi side is headed by His Excellency Engineer Rakan bin Wadah Tarabzouni, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy and Planning for International Economic Affairs and Chairman of the Coordination Committee from the Saudi side. The meeting discusses the level of progress achieved in implementing joint initiatives between the two sides, reviews the initiatives proposed for approval, and discusses recommendations and future steps. To accelerate the implementation of initiatives, reduce challenges and enhance coordination among stakeholders in both countries. The Coordination Committee in the areas of economy, trade and industry is working to implement mutually agreed initiatives and promote cooperation in the economic, trade and industrial fields, as well as to support the signing of conventions, memoranda of understanding and proposals that will enable the expansion of cooperation between the two countries and the strengthening of economic relations in the interest of common interests. The Commission ' s objectives are to promote integration of industrial sector supply chains between the Sultanate of Oman and Saudi Arabia, to develop and automate future factories, to increase inter-trade and to increase non-oil exports, thereby supporting the growth of productive sectors and enhancing private access to market opportunities. H.E. Engineer Galb Bin Said Al-Mammar, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Trade and Industry and Investment Promotion of Trade and Industry, said that economic, commercial and industrial relations between the Sultanate of Oman and Saudi Arabia were witnessing continuous development, supported by the common will to enhance economic integration and expand areas of cooperation between the two brotherly countries, noting that the committee meeting comes to follow up on what has been achieved from the agreed-upon initiatives and work to move them to more advanced stages of implementation. His Excellency added in a statement to the Oman News Agency: During the next stage, the focus will be on initiatives that achieve a direct impact on the business environment and the private sector, by facilitating the movement of trade and investment, addressing the challenges facing trade exchange, enhancing industrial integration and supply chains, and opening new areas for partnerships and investments. Mutual cooperation, in a way that contributes to achieving the goals of economic development in the two brotherly countries. His Excellency indicated that the work of the committee witnesses the pursuit of a group of joint initiatives, including addressing and reducing challenges in intra-regional trade, including products manufactured in the Sultanate of Oman and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the list of industrial capabilities, and equality in the treatment of Omani companies. Saudi Arabia in government tenders and procurement between the two countries, meetings have been held over the past period between the competent authorities and efforts have been made to identify and coordinate corporate challenges. He was pleased that initiatives also included attracting Omani and Saudi industrial investments to both countries, enhancing cooperation in the development of non-oil exports, cooperation in competition and antitrust practices, facilitating the registration of Omani goods by the General Food and Drug Authority and the Saudi Authority for Specifications, Measurements and Quality, and reviewing a number of proposed initiatives between the two sides to expand cooperation during the next phase. For his part, Engineer Khaled Ben Salim Al-Shalabi, Director-General of Industry, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment Promotion, Chairman of the CCSAP from the Omani side, said that joint initiatives represented a practical course for translating Saudi Oman ' s cooperation into projects and programmes with tangible economic impact Especially in the fields of industry, trade and investment. He explained that the Ministry seeks through this meeting to open new horizons for the private sector in the two countries, especially in the industrial fields with added value and modern technologies, including semiconductors, electronic chips and prefabricated factories, in addition to enhancing the benefit of the strategic location of the Sultanate of Oman in the field of re-export, and raising the intra-trade index between the Sultanate of Oman and the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The meeting witnesses the signing of the executive program to activate the memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Economy in the Sultanate of Oman and the Ministry of Economy and Planning. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the field of economy and planning for the years 2026-2028, in a step that enhances institutional cooperation and joint coordination in the economic and planning fields between the two brotherly countries. The executive program represents a practical path to activate the memorandum of understanding and transform areas of cooperation into programs and initiatives that can be implemented and followed up. The meeting's recommendations include work on implementation The programmes emanating from the memorandum and their inclusion as initiatives within the work of the Coordinating Committee, thus contributing to the expansion of joint action and the further integration of stakeholders in the two countries.

Detailed summary

Background & context

This story sits within Saudi Arabia's broader reform agenda and efforts to grow Oil & Gas as a pillar of non-oil GDP. The region benefits from supportive energy prices, expansionary government budgets, and rising interest from sovereign wealth funds and foreign investors.

GCC angle

For the rest of the GCC, this is a signal on the pace of activity in Oil & Gas, Food & Agriculture, Capital Markets. Capital flows and regulatory decisions in one Gulf state typically travel across borders given the similar economic structures and the coordination inside the GCC framework.

Risks & uncertainty

There is uncertainty around the read-through: projections can be moved by swings in oil prices, by US monetary policy tightening that most GCC central banks track via dollar pegs, and by regional geopolitical events. Headline numbers may also be revised when subsequent official data is published.

What happens next?

Watch for upcoming disclosures from listed names in Oil & Gas, Food & Agriculture, official macro releases for Saudi Arabia, and any commentary from regulators or sovereign wealth funds. Tharwa will refresh this briefing as new public information becomes available.