RIYADH: UAE banks provided credit facilities worth 851.87 billion dirhams ($231.93 billion) to the business and industrial sectors by the end of May, reflecting a 3.18 percent year-on-year increase. In its latest monthly statistical bulletin, the Central Bank of the UAE revealed that national banks contributed 767.14 billion dirhams, a 2.90 percent rise from the previous year, while foreign banks increased their credit offerings by 5.79 percent year-on-year to 84.73 billion dirhams. This surge supports the UAE Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which aims to build a competitive economy through advanced technologies that integrate material, digital and biological innovations. According to the CBUAE report, national banks provided 25.7 billion dirhams in credit facilities to business and industrial sectors from January to May, while foreign banks contributed 3.8 billion dirhams. Credit facilities to the private retail sector totaled 441.29 billion dirhams by the end of May, up 9.41 percent year on year. National banks provided 414.47 billion dirhams, with foreign banks adding 26.82 billion dirhams. CBUAE added that credit facilities provided to the private sector financial institutions by banks totaled 17.07 billion dirhams by the end of May, representing a rise of 43.08 percent compared to the same period in 2023. National banks contributed 16.21 billion dirhams, while foreign banks offered 862 million dirhams. The report also highlighted an 8.4 percent increase in the total value of savings deposits, which reached 294.66 billion dirhams in May. Savings in local currency amounted to 247.49 billion dirhams, with deposits in foreign currencies at 47.17 billion dirhams. Credit facilities extended to government-related entities reached 298.14 billion dirhams by the end of May, representing a 16.93 percent increase from the same period in 2023. Of this amount, national banks provided 280.58 billion dirhams, while foreign banks contributed 17.56 billion dirhams. For corporate firms in the UAE’s private sector, total credit facilities amounted to 868.95 billion dirhams by the end of May. National banks provided 783.35 billion dirhams, and foreign banks contributed 85.59 billion dirhams. The growth in credit and savings deposits suggests a positive outlook for the UAE’s financial sector and its role in supporting various economic activities.