26.08.2015 - Oman, Bahrain most vulnerable to oil slump: S&P
Oman and Bahrain are the most vunerable Gulf countries due to a prolonged slump in the oil prices, according to Standard and Poor’s credit rating agency. The agency attributed this to the low fiscal reserves and lack of economic diversification. Moreover, Oman’s sovereign wealth fund (SWF) has assets of $13 billion, far smaller than other Gulf SWFs. Ministry of Finance data showed allocations for government wages and salaries amounting to 1.5 billion riyals, including 3.5 million riyals as pension payments for retired ministers, 1.3 billion riyals as allowances (including cost-of-living allocations) and 225 million riyals for other dues in 2014...............................................Full Article: Source
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