By Mohammed Abu Meleeh

Riyadh-Mubasher: Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) withdrew SAR 40.83 billion ($10.9 billion) from foreign cash in August. Thus, the kingdom’s foreign cash and overseas deposits reached SAR 677.98 billion ($180.79 billion) at the end of August, compared with SAR 718.8 billion ($191.68 billion) in July.

Meanwhile, investments in overseas securities increased by SAR 15.87 billion from SAR 1.74 trillion to SAR 1.76 trillion.

The central bank’s reserve assets declined by SAR 24.39 billion to SAR 2.48 trillion ($662.27 billion) in August, compared with SAR 2.51 trillion ($668.78 billion) a month earlier.

The reserve assets continued the decline for the seventh straight month by SAR 270.84 billion ($72.2 billion), as it reached SAR 2.754 trillion ($734.5 billion).

The kingdom withdrew billions of dollars from global asset managers to ease the growing budget deficit and overcome stock market volatility, Financial Times reported last week.

Insight Discovery CEO Nigel Sillitoe said SAMA withdrew $50-70 billion from fund managers over the last six months.

Translated by Abdul Maguid Aboshahla