Bank lending growth slowed in September as higher interest rates dampened demand for credit, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed Monday.
The outstanding loans of universal and commercial banks, net of reverse repurchase (RRP) placements with the BSP, grew 6.5 percent year-on-year in September, slower than 7.2 percent in August.
The BSP said that on a month-on-month seasonally-adjusted basis, outstanding universal and commercial bank loans, net of RRPs, went up by 0.7 percent.
Outstanding loans to residents, net of RRPs, rose by 6.6 percent in September from 7.2 percent in August.
Growth in outstanding loans for production activities was registered at 4.9 percent in September from 5.5 percent in the previous month driven by the growth in credit to major sectors such as real estate (5.0 percent); electricity, gas, steam and air-conditioning supply (9.2 percent); wholesale and retail trade, and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (6.6 percent); financial and insurance activities (4.9 percent); and information and communication (8.1 percent).
Meanwhile, the growth of consumer loans to residents was generally steady at 23.5 percent in September from 23.1 percent in August driven largely by the sustained growth in credit card loans and faster expansion in motor vehicle loans.
Outstanding loans to non-residents went up at a slower rate of 0.3 percent in September from 8.4 percent in the previous month.
Meanwhile, domestic liquidity grew by 7.9 percent year-on-year to about P16.6 trillion in September from 6.8 percent in August. On a month-on-month seasonally-adjusted basis, M3 increased by about 1.0 percent.