Slovak banks recorded a 10.6-percent rise in retail credit year-on-year in the first half of this year, a report on the state of the financial market in 1H14 that is to be discussed by the government states.
It was especially mortgages and consumer credit that were experiencing greater turnover. The volume of housing loans went up by 12.8 percent, with new consumer credit rising even faster, by 16.8 percent.
“This rise was fuelled mainly by demand from clients who took advantage of the favourable combination of falling interest rates and high availability of housing – despite the fact that some banks applied more stringent lending standards,” a statement from Slovakia’s central bank, NBS, reads, as quoted by the TASR newswire. The increased lending isn’t without risks, however, and NBS points to the possible risk of loss both for banks and clients in the future.
Meanwhile, net profits of banks stood at €299 million in the first half of this year which represents a rise of 5.3 percent on an annual basis. “The Slovak banking sector continues to show a great deal of resilience towards possible risks, which is thanks to sound indicators vis-a-vis capital adequacy, leverage and liquidity," the NBS stated, according to TASR.
(Source: TASR)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
