Banks in Saudi Arabia and the UAE will have the strongest return on assets this year, S&P says Profitability and credit growth will remain strong for most banks in the Gulf Co-operation Council this year, supported by robust credit demand from the non-oil sector and economic diversification programmes across the region, a report has said.  The UAE and Saudi banking systems are poised to continue their growth above the rest of the region, S&P Global Ratings said in its GCC Banking Sector Outlook 2024 report.  Overall, the credit rating agency expects banks across the GCC to deliver strong return on assets supported by the robust macroeconomic environment.  “Non-oil growth should remain particularly dynamic in Saudi Arabia and the UAE,” said Benjamin Young, an analyst at S&P.  “The economic environment will support credit demand and credit growth … This will support their profitability.”  Banks in the six-member bloc are benefitting from continued economic growth momentum despite global headwinds and geopolitical uncertainties.  S&P expects interest rates in the GCC to remain high but fall by 1 per cent by the end of the year, in step with the US Federal Reserve, as inflation is projected to remain on target and contained by price administration measures.  Economies of oil-exporting Gulf nations have bounced back strongly from the pandemic-induced slowdown, driven by both oil and non-oil sectors.  The UAE, the Arab world’s second-largest economy, expanded 3.7 per cent annually in the first half of last year, driven by strong non-oil sector growth as the country continues to pursue its diversification goals, Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq said in October  Last month, the UAE Central Bank increased its 2024 growth forecast for the country's economy to 5.7 per cent, from its earlier estimate of 4.3 per cent, due to an expected rise in oil production next year.  The banking regulator also raised the Emirates' non-oil gross domestic product growth to 5.9 per cent and 4.7 per cent, for 2023 and 2024, respectively. Saudi Arabia's economy, which expanded 8.7 per cent in 2022, the highest annual growth rate among the world's 20 biggest economies, was forecast to grow 0.8 per cent last year, according to the International Monetary Fund. The World Bank has estimated GDP growth of 4.1 per cent this year for the Arab world's largest economy  (ICE DUBAI)

Fonte notizia: www.thenationalnews.com/business/banking/2024/02/02/profitability-and-credit-growth-of-gcc-banks-set