Net foreign assets of SAMA reach $555bn

JEDDAH: Net foreign assets at Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) fell to $555 billion in July, down $6 billion from the previous month, official data showed.

Assets shrank by 16 percent from a year earlier to their lowest level since February 2012.

They reached a record high of $ 737 billion in August 2014 before starting to fall.

Net foreign assets dropped as the government drew on reserves to cover a budget deficit caused by low oil prices.

In a recent report, Riyad Capital said that Saudi Arabia’s economic prospects are likely to gradually improve into the second half of 2016.

The country’s public debt-togross domestic product (GDP) ratio is seen to rise from 5.8 percent in 2015 to 13.6 percent in 2016, the report added.