UAE Central Bank's assets fall by 32% amid global crisis

The UAE Central Bank said on Tuesday its assets fell by 32 percent to AED193.7bn ($52.7bn) in 2008, its first fall since 2003, giving a further signal of the global downturn 's impact on the country.

Total assets of the bank were AED285.9bn at the end of 2007, the bank said in a statement said.

It did not give a breakdown of foreign and domestic assets.

Data from the central bank's website showed that the last time the federal central bank's assets fell was in 2003, when they shrank 1.4 percent to AED54.5bn.

The bank's board decided to transfer 50 percent of its net profit to the Ministry of Finance, 30 percent to the permanent deposit of the UAE's federal government at the Central Bank and 20 percent to the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme.

The net profit figure was AED3.83bn in 2008, up 1.4 percent on the previous year. (Reuters)

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