Interest rate in the Sultanate is likely to see a rise following last week’s decision by the US Federal Reserve and other GCC countries to hike rates. The central banks of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar have already increased their benchmark rates to avoid any kind of a speculation that can have downward pressure on their respective currencies. The Central Bank of Oman may raise interest rates applied to its certificates of deposits through which changes in interest rates are transmitted to the banking system. In respect of domestic interest rate structure of conventional banks in Oman, the weighted average interest rate on rial deposits increased from 0.894 % in September 2015 to 1.349 % in September 2016, while the weighted average lending rate increased from 4.790 % to 5.030 % during the same period. The overnight Omani rial domestic inter-bank lending rate increased to 0.403 % in September 2016 from 0.217 % a year ago. (Oman observer)