Arab News, Tuesday, Jan 31, 2023 | Rajab 8, 1444
Saudi banks’ profits up 21% in December, central bank data shows
Saudi Arabia: Deposits in Saudi
banks grew by 9 percent year-on-year to SR2.29 trillion ($609.97 billion) with
the major chunk deposited by government agencies, the monthly bulletin issued by
the Saudi Central Bank, also known as SAMA, showed.
Data showed that deposits by government entities
rose by 27 percent, the highest in 16 years, reaching SR651.2 billion.
Saudi-listed banks reported a 21 percent rise in
aggregate net profit before zakat and tax to SR6.16 billion in December 2022,
compared to SR5.11 billion a year earlier.
The data covered the results of Tadawul-listed
banks and some foreign banks operating in Saudi Arabia.
Banks’ aggregate assets increased nearly 10
percent year-on-year to SR3.62 trillion in December.
Loans issued to individuals in the Kingdom saw a
14 percent surge during 2022 reaching SR1.17 trillion by the end of 2022 as
compared to SR1.02 trillion by the end of 2021.
The volume of residential real estate financing
for individuals declined by 21 percent in 2022 for the first time since 2016.
The total volume remained at SR123.4 billion.
The SAMA report showed that remittances from Saudi
Arabia fell by 7 percent during 2022 to SR143.2 billion while remittances to the
Kingdom from citizens living abroad recorded a growth of 11 percent to reach
SR7.25 billion.
Assets held by the central bank shrank by SR63.8
billion month-on-month to SR1.93 trillion in December 2022. However, as compared
to December 2021, SAMA’s assets rose by SR85.1 billion.
The central bank’s investments in foreign
securities, which make up 58 percent of its total assets, edged down 0.2 percent
year-on-year to around SR1.13 trillion last month.