Muscat (IINA) : The total outstanding credit extended by the Oman’s conventional and Islamic banks stood at OMR21.5 billion as at the end of July 2016, a rise of 11.5 percent over the same period a year ago, according to data released by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO).

The Central Bank further said that credit to the private sector increased by 13.3 percent to OMR19.3 billion as at the end of July 2016. Of the total credit to the private sector, the share of the household sector (mainly under personal loans) stood at 46 percent, closely followed by the non-financial corporate sector at 45.7 percent, financial corporations at 5.2 percent and other sectors the remaining 3.1 percent.

Total deposits registered a growth of 4 percent to OMR20.3 billion as at the end of July 2016, Times of Oman newspaper reported.

Private sector deposits of the banking system registered a growth of 7.1 percent to OMR13.2 billion as at the end of July 2016, the CBO said in its bulletin.

Sector-wise, the share of households was 48.7 percent of the total private sector deposit base, followed by non-financial corporations at 28 percent, financial corporations at 20 percent and the other sectors at 3.3 percent.

As at the end of July 2016, narrow money stock (MI) when measured on the year-on-year basis, registered a marginal rise of 0.6 percent to OMR5.4 billion.

On the other hand, Quasi-money (savings in Oman rials and time deposits, certificates of deposit issued by commercial banks, margin deposits, and foreign currency denominated deposits) witnessed an appreciable growth of 10.6 percent during the period.

In respect of domestic interest rate structure of conventional banks, the weighted average interest rate on Omani rial deposits firmed up from 0.910 percent in July 2015 to 1.219 percent in July 2016 while the weighted average in Omani rials lending rate marginally increased from 4.812 percent to 4.929 percent during the same period.

The overnight rial Omani domestic inter-bank lending rate firmed up to 0.300 percent in July 2016 from 0.122 percent a year ago.