Kuwait’s external debt shrinks to KD 20.113 billion in Q1 of 2024
The country’s external debt increased by 1.47 percent, or KD 292.3 million, at the beginning of 2024, compared to KD 19.821 billion at the end of December 2023.
• Kuwait’s official reserve assets declined by 1.64 percent, or approximately KD 241 million, at the end of August 2024, totaling KD 14.499 billion compared to KD 14.74 billion in August 2023.
Kuwait’s total external debt decreased by 1.6 percent year-on-year at the end of the first quarter of 2024, falling by KD 326.8 million to KD 20.113 billion, down from KD 20.44 billion in the same quarter of 2023, according to Al Rai newspaper.
According to data from the Central Bank of Kuwait, Kuwait’s external debt increased by 1.47 percent, or KD 292.3 million, at the beginning of 2024, compared to KD 19.821 billion at the end of December 2023. The highest level recorded was KD 21.886 billion at the end of 2021, while the lowest level in five years was KD 16.105 billion at the end of 2019.
This data includes the general government’s external debt balances, which consist of end-of-period balances for loans and other credit facilities as outlined in the Balance of Payments and the International Investment Position Manual, along with the Central Bank of Kuwait‘s external liabilities and special drawing rights allocations.
The data also encompasses external debt balances for the private sector, which includes local banks, investment companies, exchange companies, insurance companies, and private non-financial companies.
According to the data, Kuwait’s official reserve assets declined by 1.64 percent, or approximately KD 241 million, at the end of August 2024, totaling KD 14.499 billion compared to KD 14.74 billion in August 2023. However, these reserves increased on a monthly basis by 1.27 percent from their level of KD 14.317 billion in July.
The decline in annual performance of the reserve assets was attributed to decreases in three major items, particularly foreign currency and overseas deposits, which fell by 1.6 percent to KD 12.883 billion at the end of last month, compared to KD 13.093 billion at the end of August 2023, despite a monthly growth of 1.41 percent.
The second factor was the Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), which decreased by 76.13 percent to KD 315.8 million from KD 1.323 billion in August 2023, representing a monthly decline of 75.96 percent.
