Wednesday, Dec 28, 2011
CAIRO (Zawya Dow Jones)--Saudi Arabia's money supply grew 12.4% on year in November, compared with 14.4% in October, while the central bank's foreign assets surged 21.3% compared with November 2010, new data from the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, or SAMA, showed Wednesday.
M3, the broadest measure of money supply and an indicator of future inflation, was 1.193 trillion Saudi riyals ($318.2 billion) in November, up from SAR1.061 trillion in the year earlier and up from SAR1.191 trillion in October, according to data posted on SAMA's website.
SAMA's net foreign assets rose to SAR1.973 trillion in November, from 1.948 trillion in October, and SAR1.627 trillion in November 2010, the data also showed.
Saudi Arabia, which has filled its coffers with surplus income from oil exports over the last decade, has drawn on its reserves to fund record budgets and keep its $400 billion five-year infrastructure development program on track.
It earlier earmarked additional funds to implement housing projects amid political unrest across the wider region. While this spending helped the Arab world's largest economy grow banks have remained relatively hesitant to extend credit. Lending to the private sector rose to SAR859.7 billion last month, from SAR854.3 billion in the month earlier, and up from SAR776.3 billion in November 2010.
Bank claims on the private sector tripled between the boom years of 2003 to 2008. Earlier this year, SAMA's governor, Mohammed Al Jasser, said bank lending is expected to accelerate this year.
-By Summer Said, Dow Jones Newswires; +966-546-842373; summer.said@dowjones.com
Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Co.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
28-12-11 1110GMT
