Sharjah 24 – WAM: UAE banks' investments exceeded AED640 billion by the end of January 2024, achieving the highest level in its history, according to the latest statistics from the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE).

Central Bank statistics, released in today's Banking Indicators report, showed a 19.4 percent annual increase in the investments of banks operating in the country, reaching AED640.1 billion by the end of January 2024, compared to about AED536.2 billion in January 2023.

These investments increased on a monthly basis by 0.9 percent compared to AED634.4 billion in December last year, AED5.7 billion up in a single month.

Bonds held to maturity accounted for the largest share of bank investments at around 48.6 percent, reaching AED311.2 billion by the end of last January, a growth of 2.1 percent monthly.

The share of bank investments in securities reached around 41.2 percent of the total investments, reaching AED263.6 billion by the end of January 2024, an increase of 2.53 percent monthly and 3.7 percent annually.

Bank investments in stocks hit AED16 billion by the end of January 2024, a 1.27 percent monthly increase from about AED 15.8 billion in December 2023, and from AED11.8 billion in January 2023.

According to CBUAE statistics, other bank investments reached around AED49.3 billion by the end of January 2024, a monthly increase of 0.82 percent from around AED 48.9 billion at the end of December last year.