China and the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries by Olimat Muhamad S.;

China and the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries by Olimat Muhamad S.;

Author:Olimat, Muhamad S.;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lexington Books/Fortress Academic


Sources: For the years from 2001–2010: China 2010 Statistical Yearbook, National Bureau of Statistics of China, Beijing at: www.stats.gov.cn/tjsj/ndsj/2012/index.htm (accessed on March 19, 2012 and updated on January 19, 2015. For the years 2011 and 2012: China Statistical Yearbook, 2013, China Statistics Press, Beijing: PRC, pp. 323–333. For the years from 2013 and 2014: China 2015 Statistical Yearbook, National Bureau of Statistics of China, Beijing at: http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjsj/ndsj/2015/indexeh.htm

In the financial sector, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) has been expanding in the region. It has opened branches in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha, Kuwait, and recently got approved for a branch in Riyadh. Although the banks announced in 2008 its intention to open a branch in Oman, it has not been opened yet. The growing level of bilateral trade between the two countries require a branch in the Sultanate. Currently, some financial operation with Chinese exporters are settled through ICB’s branches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Additionally, Omani merchants traveling to China are in need of Yuan and their source for it in addition to national banks in the country, ICB’s branches in the UAE. In March 2010, Bank of China (BOC) established the China Desk at Muscat Bank in Oman to strengthen bilateral trade and investment. Shortly after, the BOC opened China desks in the UAE, Ghana, Peru, and other countries.

On October 24, 2015, Oman signed a MoU along with twenty other Asian nations on establishing the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). By the end of the year, 57 countries joined the initiative as founding members. Oman joined the AIIB as a founding member on June 29, 2015. The bank was another institution suggested by Chinese president, Xi Jinping in support of his comprehensive framework of reviving the Silk Road as mapped out in 2013 in his visit to Kazakhstan. On March 28, 2015, Jinping stated in a speech delivered at the Boao Conference that, China “will vigorously promote a system of regional financial cooperation, explore a platform for exchanges and cooperation among Asian financial institutions, and advance complementary and coordinated development between the AIIB and such multilateral financial institutions as the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank.”18 The AIIB’s operation was launched officially on January 19, 2016, with an initiate funding of $100 billion. Oman’s aim is to attract investment and carryout joint projects in the areas of infrastructure, telecommunication, logistics, and port development. Oman is an active member of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

A third aspect of their financial cooperation is attracting sovereign funds investment. Sino-Omani economic cooperation extends to third-party joint venture investments. Most notably, China and Oman cooperate closely in Africa given the fact that, Oman had strong trade and political ties with the continent especially in East Africa extend for two thousand years. Oman has strong ties with Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Mozambique, and China as well. Oman has had imperial position up until recently (1965) in Tanzania, Zanzibar, in addition to other possessions in current Iran, Saudi Arabia, India, and Pakistan. Most



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