Narrow money supply rises by 11.8%

Muscat: The Sultanate registered an increase in narrow money supply (M1) by 11.8 per cent to reach OMR5.72 billion at the end of August 2020.
Meanwhile, Broad Money Supply (M2) rose 11 per cent to reach OMR19.15 billion during the period as against OMR17.25 billion in the previous year.  
Likewise, quasi-money (Rial Omani saving and time deposits, certificates of deposit issued by banks, margin deposits and foreign currency denominated deposits) registered a significant increase of 10.7 per cent during this period.  
The weighted average interest rate on RO deposits decreased marginally from 1.954 per cent in August 2019 to 1.943 per cent in August 2020, and the weighted average RO lending rate increased from 5.435 per cent to 5.482 per cent during the same period.  
Meanwhile, the overnight Rial Omani domestic inter-bank lending rate fell significantly to 1.100 per cent in August 2020 from 2.736 per cent a year ago, reflecting transmission of policy rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.  
The average Repo rate for liquidity injection by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) also stood lower at 0.5 per cent during August 2020 in comparison with 2.699 per cent in August 2019.
The effective exchange rate index of Omani rial fell by 2.2 per cent to 103.5 points as of the end of August 2020 compared to 105.6 points in the same period of 2019.
Total foreign assets of the Central Bank of Oman fell 3 per cent, reaching OMR6.66 billion compared to the same period of 2019 when it stood at OMR6.86 billion.
Private sector deposits in commercial banks and Islamic windows showed a rise of 10.8 per cent as of the end of August 2020, reaching OMR16.52 billion against OMR14.92 billion in 2019.
Total loans and financing in commercial banks rose by 2 per cent to OMR26.28 billion at the end of August 2020 against OMR25.76 billion in 2019.
The average interest rate on total credit rose 2.6 per cent at the end of the 8 months of 2020, recording a rise of 5.5 per cent in 2020 compared to the same rate during the comparable period of 2019.
The total currency issued at the end of August 2020 stood at OMR1.81 billion against OMR1.62 billion issued in 2019, marking a rise of 11.8 per cent, according to NCSI data.