Bank lending grows slower at 9.8% in September

A drop in lending to the household and production sectors slowed bank lending in August-September, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said Monday. Central bank data on the month-on-month comparison of bank lending showed that lending in September grew 9.8 percent from 12.5-percent in August. Lending to agriculture, manufacturing, real estate, and business services pushed the slow-paced growth of production loans, the central bank said. Lending to agriculture, hunting, and forestry grew by 16.2 percent and lending to the manufacturing sector grew by 13.1 percent. Lending to construction activities also continued to grow although at a slower rate of 13.8 percent from 18.9 percent in the previous month. Lending to real estate, renting and business services grew by 13.9 percent and lending to financial intermediation grew by 19.6 percent. There were however contractions in bank lending, the BSP said. Loans for production activities — which comprise 81.5 percent of banks’ total loan portfolio — decelerated by 10.8 percent in September from 12.7 percent in August. The growth of consumer loans, which include credit card receivables and auto loans, slowed down by 8 percent in September from 15.4 percent a month earlier. Bank lending to the fishing sector dropped by 3.3 percent, while lending to other community, social, and personal services also contracted by 26.6 percent. BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said that the continued expansion in bank lending supports the BSP’s assessment that demand conditions remain firm. “Monetary authorities will continue to ensure a policy environment supportive of sustainable credit growth in the economy consistent with the BSP’s price stability mandate," Tetangco said. — JE/DM, GMANews.TV