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Exotic currencies gain more than 11 pct of retail lending

In May 2008, loans in exotic currencies such as the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen were accounting for over 11 pct of retail lending, compared to 4.6 pct in May 2007, reveals data of the National Bank of Romania (BNR) cited in the Tuesday issue of daily Ziarul Financiar.

Exotic currencies gained two percentage points of the entire credit market, advancing to 4 pct of the aggregate credit in May 2008.

Credits in Swiss franc and Japanese yen address mainly the banks' retail clients who are increasingly interested in such financing, due to the nominal interest rates that are far lower than those charged for local lei or even euro.

According to the cited paper, some bankers declare themselves against lending in exotic currencies, considering it highly risky for the borrower; others however comfortably practise it in order to keep their market share up.

BNR data shows that over the last year Romanians preferred credits in euro and exotic currencies to loans in lei or dollars. In May 2008 credits in euro stood at 55 pct of the total banks' disbursements, by 4 pct more than in May 2007. Credits in euro thus hit 119,350 million lei (32,970 million euro).

Over the same interval, the share of credits in lei dropped from 40 pct to 37 pct, with leu-denominated loans totaling 80,800 million lei (22,300 million euro) in May 2008.

The share of loans in US dollars fell from 7 pct in May 2007 to 4 pct in May this year. 'The dollar lost visibility in favor to both the euro and the Swiss franc,' analysts say.

Sursa: http://www.rompress.ro

Tags: credits euro exotic lending currencies retail bnr

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