Bank credit to the domestic private sector: December 2010
01/02/2011 - Press Releases
The annual growth rate of total credit granted to the domestic private sector decelerated further to -0.2% in December 2010, from 0.4% in November 2010 and 4.1% in December 2009. This development reflects the decrease of the annual growth rate of credit to enterprises as well as to individuals and private non-profit institutions.
Credit to enterprises
The net flow of credit to enterprises (1) in December 2010 was positive, amounting to €488 million (December 2009: positive net flow of €1,182 million) and the annual growth rate of credit decreased to 1.0% (November 2010: 1.6%, December 2009: 5.1%). The positive net flow is mainly due to the increase of loans granted to other financial institutions amounting to €365 million.
The analysis of credit to enterprises by branch of economic activity shows that, in December 2010, there was an increase in the annual growth rate of credit to the branches of agriculture, other financial institutions, construction, and electricity-gas-water. On the contrary, deceleration was recorded in the annual growth rate of credit to all the other branches, and especially to industry (December 2010: -2.9%, November 2010: -1.6%, December 2009: -3.5%) and trade (December 2010: -3.5%, November 2010: -1.5%, December 2009: 4.2%).
Credit to sole proprietors
The net flow of loans to sole proprietors (professionals, farmers and unincorporated businesses) was positive, amounting to €69 million in December 2010, and its annual rate of change increased slightly in comparison with the previous month remaining however at negative level (December 2010: -0.8%, November 2010: -1.0%).
Credit to individuals & private non-profit institutions
The net flow of credit to individuals and private non-profit institutions in December 2010 was negative, amounting to minus €257 million (December 2009: positive net flow of €705 million). As a result, the annual growth rate of credit to individuals and private non-profit institutions decelerated further (December 2010: -1.4%, November 2010: -0.6%, December 2009: 3.1%).
More specifically, the net flow of housing loans was negative, amounting to minus €49 million in December 2010 (December 2009: positive net flow of €507 million) and its annual growth rate decelerated further (December 2010: -0.4%, November 2010: 0.3%, December 2009: 3.7%).
Consumer credit recorded a negative net flow of €268 million (December 2009: positive net flow of €144 million) and its annual growth rate decreased further in comparison with the previous month (December 2010: -4.2%, November 2010: -3.1%, December 2009: 2.0%).
Finally, the net flow of “other loans” to individuals and private non-profit institutions was positive, amounting to €60 million in December 2010 (December 2009: positive net flow of €54 million), and its annual rate of change was at 3.9% compared with 3.8% in November 2010 (December 2009: -1.1%).
Bank credit to the domestic private sector: December 2010 - Table
(1) It should be noted that as of June 2010 sole proprietors, in accordance with the European System of Accounts (ESA95), are not included in enterprises but are recorded as a separate sub-sector. This change, which is of a purely statistical nature, has no effect on the growth rates and the net flows of credit aggregates. Moreover, in December 2010, the outstanding amounts of credit to specific sectors have been affected by the reclassification of loans of some public corporations from the private sector to the general government, following a relevant decision of the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) in 15th November 2010.