Kuwait's Cbk Reports That The Money Supply Dropped By 0.6 Percent In December To Kd 38.9 Billion

The Kuwaiti Central Bank (CBK) said on Sunday that the broad money supply (M2) fell by 0.6% in December to KD 38.9 billion (USD 128 billion). Local banks' private sector deposits fell by 1.9 percent to KD 2.2 billion (USD 7.4 billion), according to the CBK's economic research department, which also provided statistics tables to KUNA.

Private sector foreign currency deposits fell 1.9 percent to KD 2.2 billion (USD 7.4 billion), while total local bank claims on CBK, represented by CBK bonds, ended at KD 2.9 billion (USD 7.4 billion) (USD 9.6 billion). The total assets of local banks climbed by 0.8 percent to KD 77 billion (USD 245 billion), while net foreign assets grew by 1.6 percent to KD six billion (USD 19.8 billion).

Meanwhile, time deposits with CBK fell by 9.7% in December to KD 2.9 billion (USD 9.4 billion), while the balance of used cash credit increased by 0.4 percent to KD 42 billion (USD 138.6 billion).

Last December, the average interest rate on one-year Treasury bonds was 1.375 percent, while financing of Kuwaiti imports fell by 26.9% to KD 539 million (USD 1.7 billion), and the US dollar exchange rate against the Kuwaiti dinar was 302 fils.

The overall volume of money in circulation is measured by the narrow money supply, which comprises notes, coins, and operational money deposits, whereas the broad money supply includes time deposits, savings accounts, and liquid money.