Bank lending up 22.5% in February
By Iris C. Gonzales, The Philippine Star | 04/04/2009 12:19 AM
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Lending by banks improved in February compared to growth in the same period last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported yesterday.
Outstanding loans of commercial banks including reverse repurchase agreements increased in February 2009 by 22.5 percent year-on-year, an acceleration from the previous month’s growth of 18.8 percent.
However, net of RRP placements with the BSP, lending increased by 22.6 percent year-on-year in February, slightly slower compared to the 24.5 percent expansion recorded in the previous month.
Loans for production activities led the expansion, albeit at a slower rate of 20 percent in February compared to 22 percent in the previous month.
BSP data showed that various production sectors contributed significantly to lending growth: agriculture, hunting and forestry (45.6 percent); real estate, rending and business services (31.7 percent); transportation, storage and communication (83.1 percent); wholesale and retail trade (20.8 percent); and public administration and defense (67.5 percent).
Meanwhile, bank lending to manufacturing, mining and quarrying and fishing — which together accounted for a fifth of production loans in February — registered contractions of eight percent, 42 percent and 46 percent, respectively.
The BSP said that growth in consumption loans also continued, although at a slightly decelerated rate of 15.2 percent in February from 16.4 percent in January.
The BSP said the growth in consumption loans was pulled down by the slowdown in the growth of credit card receivables to 14.7 percent in February from 17.2 percent in the previous month.
Auto loans also rose by 31 percent during the month. This was slightly higher than the previous month’s growth of 29.2 percent.
BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said monetary authorities would continue to exert efforts to encourage banks to lend.
“The strong growth of bank lending indicates that the banking system, which is the primary source of funds for all sectors, remains robust and stable in the midst of the ongoing global financial challenges,” he said.
