Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Consumer loans by universal, commercial, and thrift banks posted a quarter-on-quarter growth of 3.36 percent during the first three months of 2015, according to figures from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Such loans reached P932.8 billion from the previous quarter’s P902.5 billion. In a statement, the BSP said that this subsequently sustains the quarter-on-quarter growth in consumer loans that began in 2008.
Consumer lending was buoyed by an increase in residential real estate loans and continued growth in auto loans. Likewise, credit card receivables and salary loans, among others comprised consumer loans.
Banks were also able to keep the level of their non-performing consumer loans at a sustainable level. At the end of March 2015, such loans represented 4.9 percent of total consumer loans — a very slight increase from the previous quarter’s 4.8 percent.
According to the BSP, banks have set aside provisions for 62.2 percent of their non-performing loans as a cushion for potential credit losses.
The BSP also noted that banks’ consumer credit stood at 16.7 percent of their total loan portfolio. The share is lower than the consumer loan portfolio of the country’s neighbors such as Malaysia (53.8 percent), Indonesia (28.6 percent), Thailand (27.7 percent), and Singapore (25.8 percent).
