Banks' unsecured loan portfolio grows for second straight month in April, up 0.8% - Central Bank
MOSCOW. June 13 (Interfax) - The portfolio of unsecured retail loans issued by Russian banks increase 0.8% in April, the same as in March, the Central Bank said on its website.
It is the biggest growth rate since September 2014, when the unsecured retail portfolio also increased 0.8%.
The portfolio grew 1.1% in January-April 2017, compared with a decline of 2.6% in the same period last year.
The portfolio posted a positive growth rate as of May 1 in annual terms, up 0.6%, for the first time in two years.
The unsecured retail loan portfolio shrank 3.1% in 2016 following a contraction of 12.4% in 2015.
Speaking in the middle of April, the acting director of the Central Bank's financial stability department, Yelizaveta Danilova, said: "Since the middle of 2016, we have registered growth in the issuance of unsecured consumer loans in practically all segments. But we did not see growth in debt before this because until now major older vintages, issued in 2013-2014, were being repaid. For that reason, a positive rate of increase in the market is only being seen now."
She also said the Central Bank does not see any worrying signals on the market. Loan quality is improving, with the quality of loans made in 2016 substantially higher than those issued in previous years.