Banks ease exposure to real estate

The exposure of Philippine banks and trust entities to the volatile property segment eased to 19.54 percent of total assets as of end-September, marking its lowest in two quarters, according to data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

- - Keisha Ta-asan

The latest figure was slightly lower than the 19.61 percent recorded at end-June and also below the 19.55 percent posted in the same period last year, even as banks continued to grow their lending and investments in real estate.

Based on BSP data, total investments and loans extended by the banking industry to the property sector rose by 7.1 percent year-on-year to P3.45 trillion as of end-September from P3.22 trillion.

Real estate lending accounted for the bulk of the exposure, climbing by 9.2 percent to P3.1 trillion during the nine-month period from P2.84 trillion in the comparable year-ago period.