|Persian Gulf States Table of Contents Omani economic
development may be divided into three phases: a period of rapid
expansion between 1970 and 1986; economic retrenchment and
rationalization between 1986 and 1989 as a result of the 1985-86
oil price collapse; and a period of stabilized growth since
1990. Economic growth and structural change have proceeded
rapidly in Oman during the rule of Sultan Qabus ibn Said. Oman,
however, lagged behind such neighboring gulf amirates as Kuwait
and the UAE as a result of the late discovery of oil, financial
constraints, and political instability in the first half of the
1970s. Nonetheless, increased government expenditure as a result
of the commercial production and export of oil transformed the
standard of living in Oman. By the latter half of the 1980s,
Oman emerged as a middle-income country after entering the
development process as one of the poorest Arab states. Per
capita income rose from US$360 in 1970 to US$3,140 in 1980 and
to US$7,000 in 1991. When Sultan Qabu