Fitch: APAC Banks' Property Risks are Mounting

Banks in Asia-Pacific (APAC) will face heightened property risks over the medium term, given their relatively high exposure to the sector and the susceptibility of heavily indebted household sectors to a rise in interest rates or unemployment, says Fitch Ratings.

Residential property risks are highest for Australian and New Zealand banks, and may remain elevated in the short term as low interest rates and high house prices continue to drive mortgage growth, albeit it a slower rate. Residential property loans accounted for 43% of Australian bank assets in December 2017, up from 39% five years earlier, while in New Zealand the share rose to 46% from 43%. Australian and New Zealand households also have some of the region's highest debt burdens.

Hong Kong banks' property risks are increasing, with the territory being one of the few markets where property lending has accelerated over the past year, while intense competition continued to pressure margins. Mortgages account for a relatively low proportion of system assets, but a sharp housing market downturn could hurt sentiment and expose vulnerabilities, as rising prices have boosted private-sector wealth, banks' reserves and collateral valuations. Banks' rising exposure to mainland Chinese property is driving real-estate lending growth.

Korea's high household debt would make its economy less resilient to shocks, including a housing market downturn. Household debt ratios are unlikely to decline over the medium term. However, household assets are also relatively high and banks' property exposure is healthy overall, with low delinquencies and moderate LTV ratios. The same is also broadly true for Singapore, where we expect a more buoyant property market to support bank lending in 2018.

APAC regulators have actively tightened macro-prudential measures in an effort to strengthen banking-sector resilience to potential property risks. These measures have helped cool property markets in Singapore and Taiwan, while the tight stance has generally bolstered loss-absorption buffers and supported lending standards. Nevertheless, continued rapid lending and a further rise in risk appetite could increase the prospects of negative ratings action in the medium term, particularly in the absence of commensurate reinforcement to buffers.

Household leverage has started to decline in the emerging markets where it is highest - Malaysia and Thailand. We expect some fallout from over-supply in Malaysia, but risks to banks should be manageable as their exposure to the more vulnerable segments has remained small. Strong commercial real-estate lending growth by Thai banks in 2017 reflected an improving operating environment and followed sluggish growth in previous years, although there are still risks associated with consumer lending. Real-estate lending growth has also remained high in the Philippines.

Chinese banks shifted toward retail banking and mortgage lending in 2017, amid pressures in the corporate and financial sectors. However, increases in household leverage have been from a low base and have not reached the levels of most developed economies, suggesting that any near-term risks from China's household debt burden remain moderate. Bigger risks would emerge if household lending was left unchecked over the medium term.

The risk across APAC of a residential property market downturn that significantly undermines banks' asset quality is unlikely in 2018, given that economic conditions are likely to remain benign. However, rapid mortgage lending growth, incrementally higher risk-taking and relaxed mortgage pricing amid competitive pressures are likely to have created vulnerabilities that could be tested by a change in economic conditions. Rising interest rates are a potential trigger, despite our view that monetary tightening will be much slower in APAC than in the US.

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