UAE national banks increase credit by $7.7bn for two sectors

The UAE national banks have increased credit facilities for the business and industrial sectors by AED28.4 billion ($7.73 billion) in the first five months of this year, the Central Bank of the UAE data showed.

The two sectors saw a four percent rise in credit balance from national banks between January and May, rising from AED717.1 billion in December 2022 to AED745.5 billion in May 2023, state-run WAM news agency reported.

National banks increased their credit lending for the sectors by AED8.2 billion in May, a month-on-month increase of one percent and a year-on-year growth of 3.3 percent.

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The state-owned banks provided the most credit to the sectors, totalling AED825.6 billion as of May, or 90.3 percent of the combined credit balance of the two sectors.

Foreign banks had a considerably smaller share at 9.7 percent, or AED80.1 billion.

The credit balance for the sectors from banks in Abu Dhabi stood at AED370.1 billion as of the end of May, while banks in Dubai provided AED353.7 billion. The lenders in other emirates gave AED101.8 billion to these sectors.

Traditional banks extended credit worth AED679.8 billion, accounting for 82.3 percent. On the other hand, credit issued by Islamic banks reached AED145.8 billion, making 17.7 percent of the total credit.