Private sector lending seen slowing to 5 or 6 percent
Credit expansion to the country’s private sector is likely to slow to 5-6 percent by the end of the year, Bank of Greece Governor Giorgos Provopoulos said yesterday. «As things look, the rate of credit expansion to the private sector will be around 5 to 6 percent by the end of 2009,» he said. Earlier in the year, Greek authorities had said they wanted the pace of credit expansion to stay above 10 percent in 2009 and proffered a 28-billion-euro liquidity support scheme to keep the economy adequately funded. Based on central bank data, growth in Greek household borrowing slowed to an annual 8.3 percent pace in April from 9.2 percent in March. Credit to businesses also fell to an annual 11.8 percent clip in April from 12.2 percent in March.
