PH soured loans edge up in April

The Philippine banking system's gross non-performing loan (NPL) ratio climbed by nine basis points (bps) to 3.39 percent in April, reversing the improvement seen in March, as loan growth slowed and more borrowers fell behind on payments, according to the central bank.

- BY DERCO ROSAL

The latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed that the banking industry's NPL ratio rose at the start of the second quarter, from a three-month low of 3.3 percent at the end of the first quarter.

It was still lower than the 3.45-percent gross NPL ratio seen in April last year.

BSP data showed bad loans increased by 0.6 percent to P519.2 billion as of end-April from P516.1 billion in March. Year-on-year, soured loans hiked by eight percent from P480.6 billion in April last year.

Loans become non-performing if unpaid for at least 90 days past due date, posing a credit risk as borrowers are less likely to repay.