Page 127 - RusRPTJun24

8.1.2 Loans
Corporate lending continued to grow quickly (+1.9% in April vs +1.8% in March). Developers accounted for around a third of the increase. In addition, a significant amount of loans was issued to companies from a number of sectors to complete the investment projects that had been started previously, among other things, and to the service providers under state contracts.
The majority of the growth was driven by ruble-denominated loans, which rose by 1.1 trillion rubles (+1.8%). Of this amount, more than a third, around 0.4 trillion rubles, was directed to developers under project financing for residential construction. Significant volumes of loans were also issued to transportation, energy, and telecommunications companies, as well as to government contractors for the completion of previously initiated investment projects.
The growth of foreign currency loans also accelerated, amounting to 318 billion rubles in ruble terms (+2.5% after +0.5% in March). This is likely due to the desire of certain exporting companies to borrow at lower interest rates, as they primarily borrow in foreign currencies.
According to preliminary data, growth in the mortgage portfolio accelerated to 1.4% vs 1.2% in March, mostly due to the decrease in the number of loans repaid early, whereas the rise in the amount of new loans granted was not so significant. Around 75% of loans were issued as part of the government programmes. According to preliminary estimates, consumer lending continued to surge (growth remained at the March level of 1.8%).
127 RUSSIA Country Report June 2024 www.intellinews.com