MUSCAT: Oman’s total vehicle registrations fell by 19.5 per cent to 6,935 in January this year, against 8,612 units for the same month of 2016.
The fall in registration can be attributed to reluctance of people to spend on high value products like vehicles in view of ongoing economic slowdown, increase in fuel prices and slackness in job creation.
As far as different types of vehicles are concerned, a drastic fall witnessed in the category of commercial vehicles and taxis, which dipped by 44.8 per cent and 47.5 per cent, respectively, to 1,140 units and 30 units, according to statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) on Tuesday.
“I think, it is in line with the general trend. It could be due to postponement of purchase decisions,” Aftab Patel, chief executive officer of Al Omaniya Financial Services.