Oman improved three places in the 2026 World Competitiveness Report, ranking 25th out of 70 economies, up from 28th last year.
The progress reflects continued increases in the competitiveness of the national economy and a further strengthening of the business and investment environment.
The report, published by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), highlighted Oman’s progress in government and business efficiency, with Oman ranking 15th globally for government efficiency and 18th for business.
The country’s performance was attributed to ongoing economic efforts, wide-ranging legislative and regulatory reforms under Oman Vision 2040, aimed at boosting competitiveness and attracting investment.
The country ranked 1st internationally for the absence of personal income tax, 2nd for tax revenue collection, 4th for investment incentives and consumption tax rate, and 7th for inward foreign direct investment inflows as a percentage of GDP.
Oman also achieved high rankings in policy and regulatory indicators, including 5th globally for investment incentives, 7th for the legal and regulatory framework, 7th for government policy adaptability, and 6th for public finance and social cohesion.
In economic performance, Oman ranked fourth globally for having a low risk of businesses relocating abroad, 9th for inflation control, 10th for economic resilience, and 14th for capital investment growth.
According to the report the country also performed well in entrepreneurship and innovation, ranking first for corporate awareness of potential bias in artificial intelligence applications and 3rd for entrepreneurial acceptance of failure as part of the business journey, 7th for venture capital, and 10th for entrepreneurial spirit.
Oman also recorded notable progress in infrastructure and digital transformation, ranking 1st globally for mobile broadband subscriptions, 4th for AI skills, 4th for corporate commitment to AI-related regulation, 5th for environmental legislation, and 7th for telecommunications investment. These results underline Oman’s readiness for the digital economy.
The CEO survey shows that policy stability in Oman was the leading factor attracting investment, cited by 50.7 percent of respondents, and a business-friendly environment (42 percent), government efficiency (39.1 percent), and economic dynamism (37.7 percent).