Saudi Arabia expects economic growth in 2005 to exceed last year's level of 5.3 percent, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) Governor Hamad Al-Sayari said yesterday. "We are optimistic that it is going to be better than last year," he was quoted as saying by Arab News. Al-Sayari also said SAMA was monitoring the sharp rise in liquidity after last year's 17.2 percent rise in M3 money supply, which extended into this year with a five percent increase in the first quarter. "We always have to be vigilant. The increase in liquidity is an issue," he said on the sidelines of a Gulf banking conference in Riyadh. "Fortunately inflation is well contained... but the asset inflation is a thing to be worried about," he added referring to surging equity and real estate prices.
