{"id":101613,"date":"2025-03-13T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-13T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/uae\/this-morning-bank-assets-rose-to-aed-4-6-tn-in-2024-abu-dhabi-inflation-fell-in-january\/"},"modified":"2025-03-13T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-03-13T00:00:00","slug":"this-morning-bank-assets-rose-to-aed-4-6-tn-in-2024-abu-dhabi-inflation-fell-in-january","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/uae\/2025\/03\/13\/this-morning-bank-assets-rose-to-aed-4-6-tn-in-2024-abu-dhabi-inflation-fell-in-january\/","title":{"rendered":"THIS MORNING: Bank assets rose to AED 4.6 tn in 2024 + Abu Dhabi inflation fell in January"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, lovely people. <\/strong>On an otherwise relatively quiet day of news, MGX\u2019s blockbuster USD 2 bn crypto-based investment in Binance grabbed global headlines. <\/p>\n

We also have several M&A updates<\/strong>, with Emirates NBD\u2019s takeover bid of its Islamic unit Emirates Islamic receiving backing from the latter\u2019s board, and Dubai Aerospace Enterprise reportedly eyeing a sale of its maintenance unit Joramco. <\/p>\n

PLUS- We have a special new interview series for you this morning<\/strong>, with an equally special guest. The World in 2030 is where we will attempt to make sense of the rapidly changing global landscape and technology trends defining how we will do business for years to come.<\/p>\n

From Dubai to Abu Dhabi, Riyadh to Cairo, we\u2019ll be sitting down with the smartest people we know to break it all down.<\/strong> You can find our first in this series \u2014 with Mashreq\u2019s Group CFO Norman Tambach \u2014 below. <\/p>\n

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\u2601\ufe0fWEATHER- Expect another cloudy day today<\/strong>, with temperatures set to reach 28\u00b0C in Dubai before dropping to an overnight low of 20\u00b0C, according to our favorite weather app and the National Center of Meteorology's forecast (pdf)<\/a>. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi could see more rain<\/strong>, with temperatures peaking at 23\u00b0C, with a low of 20\u00b0C.<\/p>\n

So<\/strong>, when do we eat? <\/strong>Maghrib is at 6:30pm today in Dubai and 6:34pm in Abu Dhabi. You\u2019ll have until fajr prayers at 5:13am in Dubai and 5:17am in Abu Dhabi tomorrow to finish your sohour.<\/p>\n

WATCH THIS SPACE-<\/p>\n

<\/a> #1- <\/strong>Nomura <\/strong>Holdings is expanding its wealth management team in Dubai and Singapore<\/strong>, Bloomberg<\/a> reports, citing Ravi Raju, the head of its international wealth business. The Japanese firm will open a new Dubai office, doubling its previous space to accommodate up to 60 staff, as it looks to build on its strong earnings momentum and to diversify revenue streams beyond investment banking.<\/p>\n

REMEMBER- <\/strong>The company is doubling down on investments in the region, with plans to hire three to four relationship managers in Dubai<\/a> as it seeks to expand its UAE wealth management business. <\/p>\n

What\u2019s next?<\/strong> Nomura currently has 15 employees in Dubai and plans to increase its global headcount by 50% across the UAE, Hong Kong, and Singapore within five years. The firm also aims to double its assets under management to USD 60 bn in the same period. <\/p>\n

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<\/a> #2- <\/strong>UAE <\/strong>car ins. premiums continue to rise, relief unlikely until June: <\/strong>Car owners renewing their vehicle ins. policies in the UAE saw premiums increase by 15-20% y-o-y on average in January and February, with rates unlikely to ease before June, Gulf News<\/a> quotes Avinash Babur, CEO of InsuranceMarket.ae, as saying. <\/p>\n

Motor ins. costs in the UAE began climbing significantly in 2023 as insurers were instructed to cease deep discounting<\/strong>. The April 2024 floods further accelerated premium hikes due to widespread car damages. Electric cars, on the other hand, which were heavily impacted by flood-related damages last year, have seen premium hikes slow in 2025, after steep increases throughout 2024.<\/p>\n

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#3- UAE pushes new circular economy policies across key sectors: <\/strong>The UAE Circular Economy Council is looking to introduce new circular economy policies for sustainable infrastructure, transport, advanced manufacturing, food, and textile recycling, state news agency Wam<\/a> reports. <\/p>\n

DATA POINTS- <\/p>\n

<\/a>#1- <\/strong>Gross <\/strong>bank assets in the UAE rose 2.4% <\/strong>m-o-m to AED 4.6<\/strong> tn at the end of December 2024<\/strong>, up from AED 4.45 tn in November 2024, according to the Central Bank of the UAE\u2019s (CBUAE) latest monetary and banking developments report (pdf)<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Gross credit increased 0.8% m-o-m to AED 2.2 tn<\/strong>, driven by an 8.3% rise in foreign credit, which offset a 0.4% decline in domestic credit. The decline in local lending was led by a 2.5% drop in public sector credit, a 0.2% dip in private sector lending, and a 2.5% fall in loans to non-banking financial institutions. However, credit to the government sector increased by 1.6%.<\/p>\n

Total bank deposits grew 1.5% m-o-m to AED 2.9 tn<\/strong>, with resident deposits rising 0.5% and non-resident deposits surging 13.9%. The increase in resident deposits was mainly due to a 4.2% rise in deposits from government-related entities, a 0.9% increase in private sector deposits, and a 16.5% jump in deposits from non-banking financial institutions, which outweighed a 5.2% decline in government sector deposits.<\/p>\n

CBUAE\u2019s total foreign assets jumped 4.2% m-o-m to approximately AED 860.5 bn<\/strong>, according to the bank\u2019s latest data (pdf)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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<\/a> #2- <\/strong>Inflation in <\/strong>Abu Dhabi fell to 0.2% y-o-y in January,<\/strong> down from 0.3% in December, according to figures (pdf<\/a>)<\/a> from the Abu Dhabi Statistics Center.<\/p>\n

The main culprits:<\/strong> Prices of housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels \u2014 the largest component of the basket of goods and services \u2014 rose by 1.0% y-o-y, in what is its highest rise since January of last year. Food and beverage prices also increased by 1.7% on an annual basis. However, this was offset by a 5.1% decline in transport prices y-o-y, as well as a 4.0% y-o-y decrease in the prices of furnishings and household equipment.<\/p>\n

On a m-o-m basis,<\/strong> Abu Dhabi\u2019s inflation slowed by 0.2% in January, after having slowed at the same rate in December, according to separate data (pdf)<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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#3- <\/strong>Dubai\u2019s GDP grew 2.9% y-o-<\/strong>y in 3Q 2024,<\/strong> according to data (pdf)<\/a> released by the government. The biggest contributors to GDP grew as follows:<\/strong><\/p>\n