Oman’s central bank raises OMR20mn through treasury bills

The Central Bank of Oman (CBO) successfully raised OMR20 million through the allotment of treasury bills on Monday, according to reports.

The majority of the funds raised, totaling OMR19.5 million, were allocated to treasury bills with a maturity period of 91 days. For these short-term instruments, the average accepted price was OMR99.034 for every OMR100, with the minimum accepted price at RO 99.030. The average discount rate stood at 3.87420%, and the average yield reached 3.91199%.

In addition to the 91-day bills, the CBO also allotted treasury bills amounting to OMR0.5 million for a longer maturity period of 182 days. The average accepted price for these longer-term bills was OMR98.065 per OMR100, with the minimum accepted price matching this figure. The average discount rate for the 182-day bills was 3.88063%, and the average yield was 3.95720%.

Treasury bills are highly secure, short-term financial instruments issued by the Ministry of Finance. They offer licensed commercial banks an avenue to invest surplus funds. The CBO manages these issuances and provides liquidity through discounting and repurchase facilities. These instruments are crucial for promoting the local money market by establishing a benchmark yield curve for short-term interest rates, and the government may also utilize them for financing recurrent expenditures.