International reserves increase Dhs12.6bn in UAE banking system during Nov-Jan

The international reserves of the UAE banking system have grown by Dhs12.6bn over three months, from November 2020 to January 2021, the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has revealed.

With this rise, the cumulative balance of the country’s international reserves amounted to over Dhs519bn at the end of January 2021, a 2.3 per cent increase compared to the balance registered in November last year, accounting for Dhs507bn.

Net international reserves amounted to Dhs377.23bn at the end of January 2020, statistics reveal.

Meanwhile, the balance of the UAE banking system’s international reserves is expected to rise further in the coming period, official news agency WAM reported.

Gross bank assets in the UAE, including bankers’ acceptances, were recorded at Dhs3.172 trillion by the end of January 2021. Gross credit in the banking system grew from Dhs1.779 trillion by the end of December 2020 to Dhs1.779.2 trillion in January 2021.

Read: UAE gross bank assets at Dhs3.172 trillion at the end of January

Meanwhile, the CBUAE governor confirmed earlier this month that the overall liquidity of the nation’s banking system has returned to pre-Covid levels.

Read: Overall liquidity in UAE banking system back to pre-Covid levels – Central Bank

He further projected the country’s real GDP to increase by 2.5 per cent in 2021.

The CBUAE also said that the banks’ drawdown of the dedicated Targeted Economic Support Scheme (TESS) zero-cost liquidity facility was Dhs22bn in March 2021, down from the maximum drawdown of about Dhs44bn in Q2 2020.