Economic performance of Bahrain, Oman expected to improve as oil prices surge: S&P

Economic performance of Bahrain, Oman expected to improve as oil prices surge: S&P

RIYADH: With oil revenue projected to rise amid strengthening crude prices, S&P Global Ratings expects Bahrain and Oman to improve their economic performance as the Gulf nations continue with their fiscal reforms. The global rating agency revised Bahrain’s outlook to positive from stable on expectations that solid growth in non-oil earnings and budget consolidation measures will help ease pressure on the country’s fiscal position. S&P said it expects Bahrain's government to continue pursuing reforms to reduce fiscal deficits that will place debt to the gross domestic product on a more sustainable path. “We also assume the country's external vulnerabilities will decline amid current account surpluses over 2022-2024. We, therefore, revised our outlook on Bahrain to positive from stable and affirmed our 'B+/B' ratings,” said S&P in its report released on Nov. 25. The rating agency kept its transfer and convertibility assessment on Bahrain unchanged at 'BB-'. “The positive outlook indicates that we expect the government will continue implementing fiscal reforms to reduce the budget deficit and benefit from additional support from other Gulf Cooperation Council sovereigns, if needed,” it said. As Bahrain looks at strong economic performance, with its GDP registering the fastest growth over a decade, it is positively