Bank credit up 6.74 pc to Rs 102.69 lakh cr; deposits rise 9.82 pc

Bank credit and deposits grew by 6.74 per cent and 9.82 per cent to Rs 102.69 lakh crore and Rs 137.11 lakh crore in the fortnight ended April 24, latest data from the RBI showed.

In the year-ago fortnight, bank loans had stood at Rs 96.20 lakh crore and deposits at Rs 124.83 lakh crore.

In the previous fortnight which ended on April 10, 2020, bank credit had grown by 7.20 per cent and deposits by 9.45 per cent.

In the fiscal ended March 31, 2020, bank loans had decelerated to 6.14 per cent, a near five-decade low, due to slower economic growth, lower demand and as banks remained risk averse.

Loan growth in FY20 was the slowest since the fiscal ended March 31, 1962, when it had increased by 5.38 per cent.

During FY20, bank deposits grew by 7.93 per cent to Rs 135.71 lakh crore as against Rs 125.73 lakh crore.

In March 2020, non-food bank credit growth slowed to 6.7 per cent from 12.3 per cent in the year-ago month due to a sharp decline in advances given by banks to industries and services sectors, according to the RBI data.

Banks' non-food credit stood at Rs 92.63 lakh crore in March, as against Rs 86.74 lakh crore in the year-ago month.

Loan growth to the services sector decelerated sharply to 7.4 per cent in March 2020 from 17.8 per cent in March 2019.

Credit growth to non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) slowed to 25.9 per cent from 29.2 per cent in March 2019, the Reserve Bank data showed.

Growth in advances to industry decelerated to 0.7 per cent in March 2020 from a growth of 6.9 per cent in March 2019.

Within industry, credit growth to beverage & tobacco, mining & quarrying, petroleum, coal products & nuclear fuels, cement & cement products and vehicles, vehicle parts & transport equipment accelerated.

Growth in advances to agriculture & allied activities decelerated to 4.2 per cent in March 2020 from 7.9 per cent in March 2019.

Personal loans growth decelerated marginally to 15 per cent in March 2020 from 16.4 per cent in March 2019, RBI data showed.