<p dir="LTR"><span>Financial Tribune- The Iranian private sector’s deposits in banks and non-bank financial institutions reached 10.46 quadrillion rials ($333.8 billion at market exchange rate) by July 21, marking a 30.9% growth at an annualized rate.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>Private lenders accounted for 72.1% of the savings, according to a Central Bank of Iran’s report published on Monday.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>Commercial state-owned bank and specialized banks accounted for 17.7% and 10.2% of the total deposits, respectively.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>However, the government’s total deposits in the banking sector dropped by 8.4% during the year ending July 21, standing at 287.7 trillion rials ($9.15 billion). The reduction in governmental deposits was more significant in private banks, declining 29.7% compared with the previous year.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>Successive cuts in interest rates have not yet resulted in a significant drop in the total amount of term deposits kept in the banks. The amount stood at 8.7 quadrillion rials ($276.8 billion), growing by 31.5% in the same period, slightly higher than the previous year’s growth of 29.8%.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>The value of term deposits grew by 7.3% during the four months to July 21, whereas the figure had recorded a 9.5% growth during the same period year-on-year. </span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>The total amount of Qarzol-Hassaneh (interest-free) deposits also increased by 24% year-on-year, as most lenders have taken to attracting cheap resources.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>The private sector’s debts to the banking system reached 7 quadrillion rials ($224 billion) during the four months ending July 21, registering an annual growth of 20.5%. Private banks solely accounted for 63.3% of private sector’s total debts to the banking sector.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>CBI’s data indicate that lenders owed a sum of 909 trillion rials ($8.9 billion) to the central bank by the end of the fourth Iranian fiscal month, up by 9.1% compared with last year’s 833 trillion rials.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>Specialized banks accounted for the largest portion of banks’ total debts to CBI during the period. Private lenders’ debts to CBI increased by 14.2% during the 12 months ending July 21, though they had managed to considerably reduce it during the previous Iranian year (ended March 19, 2016).</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>According to CBI’s report, the money supply reached 10.818 quadrillion rials ($344.1 billion) by July 21, indicating a 30% growth year-on-year. The liquidity grew by 6.4% since the beginning of the Iranian year on March 20.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>The growth in broad money supply has prompted fears about a recurrence of double-digit inflation after the country achieved single-digit inflation in June after nearly three decades.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>CBI, however, reported earlier this week that inflation had reached 8.8% by September 21, which still showed a decline. It had put the inflation rate for the preceding month, which ended August 21, at 8.9%.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>CBI’s report came after the Statistical Center of Iran put the inflation rate for the same period at 8.3%.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>Banks’ total foreign assets were worth 2.3 quadrillion rials ($73.1billion) by July 21, marking a 3.3% growth compared with the same period of last year.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>The three public-sector commercial banks recorded 20.8% growth in the value of their foreign assets, but they still account for the smallest portion of foreign assets at 352 trillion rials.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>The five specialized banks, owned by the government, experienced a 18.8% surge in their foreign assets, whereas private banks recorded a 4.4% drop in foreign assets.</span></p> <p dir="LTR"><span>Figures also show that banks were keeping 1.114 quadrillion rials ($35.4 billion) with CBI in reserve requirement. The amount grew by 23.3% compared with the previous year’s 903.4 trillion rials.</span></p>