BANK lending continued to expand in March averaging 13.7 percent, which was slower than the 15.2-percent clip reported in February and a reflection of the slowdown in loans for production purposes during the period.
Bank lending for the period was driven by loans taken out for production activities—as these type of loans comprise four-fifths of the banks’ total loan portfolio.
The other fifth, meanwhile, comprised of loans for household consumption.
Loans for production activities expanded by 13.3 percent in March, from the 14.5 percent in February.
The growth in production loans was driven primarily by lending to the following sectors: real estate, renting, and business services (10.1 percent); manufacturing (11.4 percent); wholesale and retail trade (12.6 percent); electricity, gas and water (14.2 percent); and financial intermediation (19.3 percent).
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas also said that bank lending to other sectors also increased during the month except for public administration and defense, which declined by 2.3 percent.
Meanwhile, loans for household consumption expanded by 18.8 percent in March, from 21.1 percent in February amid continued growth in credit card loans, auto loans and other types of loans.