The total assets of banks operating in the UAE grew by 3 percent year-on-year to reach 3.17 trillion dirhams by the end of January 2021 compared to 3.08 trillion dirhams registsred at the end of January 2020. But it declined on a monthly basis by 0.5 percent compared to 3.19 trillion dirhams at the end of last year. Bank reserves at the UAE Central Bank declined by about 2.3 percent on an annual basis and 3.3 percent on a monthly basis in January, to reach by its end to 305.7 billion dirhams.
The total credit in the banking sector grew by 2.4 percent on an annual basis, with a slight growth that did not exceed 0.01 percent on a monthly basis in January, to reach 1.78 trillion dirhams. Bank credit to the private sector recorded a limited growth in January 2021 at a rate of 0.2 percent, but it declined by about 2.4 percent on an annual basis, compared to its levels at the end of January 2020, to reach 1.11 trillion dirhams.
Government credit from the banking sector grew by about 12 percent on an annual basis and 2 percent on a monthly basis, reaching 257 billion dirhams in January. While the public sector credit (semi-government companies) registered a growth rate of 17.9 percent on an annual basis, although it decreased by about 1.8 percent on a monthly basis in January, to reach 215.9 billion dirhams.
Source (Al Khaleej Newspaper-UAE, Edited)
