Oman's money supply rises 12%

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Muscat: The broad money supply in Oman witnessed a growth of 12 percent on an annual basis, reaching about OMR23.6 billion by the end of April 2024.

This increase was due to the increase in narrow money by 7 percent and quasi-money by 13.9 percent, which consists of the total savings deposits and time deposits in Omani riyals plus certificates of deposit issued by banks in addition to margin accounts and all foreign currency deposits in the banking sector.

Cash held by the public decreased by 7 percent at the end of last April, while demand deposits increased by 11.2 percent.

With regard to the interest rate structure of conventional commercial banks, the weighted average interest rate on deposits in Omani rials increased from 2.192 percent in April 2023 to 2.580 percent in April 2024, while the weighted average interest rate on loans in Omani rials increased from 5.366 percent to 5.604 percent during the same period.
The average interest rates in the interbank lending market for one night recorded an increase of 5.212 percent in April 2024 compared to 5.147 percent in April 2023.

This is due to the increase in the weighted average interest rate on repurchase operations to reach 6.000 percent compared to 5.500 percent during the same period last year, in line with the policies of the US Federal Reserve.

Total assets of Islamic banking
Meanwhile, the total assets of Islamic banks and windows combined amounted to about OMR7.5 billion by the end of April 2024, representing 17.7 percent of the total assets of the banking sector in the Sultanate of Oman. This is an increase of 13.2 percent compared to the same period of last year.

Statistics issued by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) indicated that the total financing balance granted by units practicing this activity increased by 12 percent to reach OMR6.3 billion by the end of April 2024.

Deposits at Islamic banks and windows also increased by 15.9 percent to reach about OMR5.8 billion by the end of April 2024.