Dubai: The value of foreign assets held by Kuwait's central bank declined by 10.6 per cent in June, compared with the month earlier, data from the country's monetary authority showed yesterday.
Total foreign assets held by the central bank stood at 6.1 billion Kuwaiti dinars (Dh81.8 billion) in June, compared with 6.8 billion dinars in May, according to data posted on its website. On the year, the central bank's assets were up 13.4 per cent in June.
"The central bank of Kuwait's balance sheet tends to become larger when foreign exchange comes into the country and smaller when the foreign exchange outflows occur," said Giyas Gokkent, National Bank of Abu Dhabi's chief economist.
Local banks
Net foreign assets held by local banks in Kuwait declined for a fourth consecutive month in June to 3.5 billion dinars, according to the data. On the year, net foreign assets dropped 15.3 per cent in June.
Separately, Kuwait's M2 money supply, a future indicator of inflation in the country, rose an annual 4.7 per cent during June to 26.5 billion dinars, broadly unchanged from May.
On a monthly basis, M2 fell 1.7 per cent in June, compared with May, according to the data published on the central bank's website.
"M2 fell in reflection of the decline in residents' deposits by 2.2 per cent month on month basis in June, driven by a decline in demand deposits of 8.6 per cent, for the same period," said Gokkent.
