Comparative Banking Data from the Palestine Monetary Authority and the Association of Banks in Palestine

The reports and statistical tables at the Palestine Monetary Authority, in addition to statistics and reports issued by the Association of Banks in Palestine for the year 2021 ("Banking Corner"), and a comparison with the year 2020, show the following:

The (total assets of licensed banks) in Palestine increased at the end of 2021 by 1.6% to reach $21.7 billion.

(Customer deposits) increased in 2021 by 1.8% to amount to $16.5 billion.

The (credit facilities portfolio) increased in 2021 by 2.6% to reach approximately $10.7 billion, 23% of which are facilities granted to the public sector.

(Non-performing loans) in 2021 amounted to $446.1 million, or 4.2% of total banking facilities.

(Net income of banks) rose by the end of 2021 to $178.4 million, compared with $100.6 million in 2020.

The ratio of (bounced checks) to checks in circulation declined to about 6.2% in the fourth quarter of 2021, compared with 7% in the previous quarter.

(Bank revenues) increased in 2021 to reach $768.6 million, affected by an increase in net interest and non-interest income, and a decrease in expenses by 1.1%. In addition, the value of provisioning declined by about 36%, after part of the provisions recorded in 2020 was reversed, since that year was high-risk.

Foreign banks achieved (net profit after tax) in 2021 of $83.5 million, an increase of about 44% from 2020.

Meanwhile, local banks achieved (net profits) of $94.9 million, up 122% from 2020.

Commercial banks achieved (net profits after taxes) in 2021, constituting 85% of total banks' income, amounting to $152.9 million, compared with about $25.5 million for Islamic banks.

(Return on assets) rose in 2021 to 15.1% compared with 9.3% in the same period of the previous year.

(Return on equity) increased to 1.2% compared with 0.8% during the comparison period.

(Net interest income) rose in 2021 by 7.8% to $669.2 million.

The number of checks in circulation in the Palestinian market during 2021 reached 7,895,346 checks, with a total value of $21.4 billion.

As for (bounced checks), they recorded a noticeable decline of about 43.1% in number and about 26.5% in value, reaching by the end of 2021 817,081 checks with a value of $1.5 billion.

-        In reviewing the table (Gross Domestic Product), from 1994.. we see that in that year it was valued at 2,843 million dollars.... and it rose nominally until it reached the amount of 4,313 million dollars in 2000.. then it decreased in the following years, until 2004.. where it reached in 2010 the value of 9,681 million dollars... and it continued high growth, until it reached in 2019 the amount of 17,133 million dollars.. then it decreased in 2020 – due to the Corona pandemic to the amount of 15,531 million dollars.. then it returned to growth and ascent until it reached in 2021, to the amount of 18,036 million dollars at the end of 2021.. and the Gross Domestic Product for the West Bank was valued at 15,007 million dollars .. and these data are at current prices, which are accompanied by and exude from their figures the fingerprints of inflation, and rising prices ..over these years.

As for the contribution of (economic activities) to GDP in 2021, the first rank was the services sector, which contributed about $3.052 billion (where the largest amounts in the services activity came from education, valued at $992 million, then real estate and rental activities at $686 million). It was followed, in terms of contribution to GDP, by wholesale and retail trade and repair of vehicles at $2.758 billion, then mining—manufacturing, water and electricity—at $1.826 billion, followed by agriculture at $977 million and construction at $711 million (at constant prices).

·      Date: 30-8-2022