Credit institutions’ credit losses small

Credit institutions operating in Finland incurred EUR 363 million in impairments and credit losses[1] in the past 12 months on loans granted to the public. This corresponds to 0.14% of the total stock of loans. In early 2018, a new model was introduced for the recognition of impairment losses (in Finnish only), but, since then, their amount relative to the loan stock has changed only slightly.

Impairment losses on corporate loans in the past 12 months were slightly higher than on household loans (0.19% of the corporate loan stock). Impairment losses on corporate loans have, however, decreased on average in the past five years or so. Impairment losses incurred on household credit during the past 12 months, in turn, corresponded to 0.15% of the loan stock in June 2019. Notwithstanding the slight increase witnessed in the first half of 2019, impairment losses on household loans have remained virtually unchanged in recent years.

Of the stock of household credit, impairment losses have especially increased in the past 12 months on consumer credit. Impairment losses on consumer credit totalled EUR 141 million (0.87% of the loan stock) in the past 12 months, mostly comprising unsecured consumer credit and overdrafts and credit card credit. Still in June 2018, impairment losses for the past 12 months amounted to 0.60% of the loan stock. The 12-month total of impairment losses on secured consumer credit and housing loans has not exceeded 0.05% of the loan stock in this decade.

Loans

Households' new drawdowns of housing loans in June 2019 amounted to EUR 1.8 bn, which is slightly more than in the corresponding period a year earlier. At the end of June 2019, the stock of euro-denominated housing loans totalled EUR 98.9 bn and the annual growth rate of the stock was 2.0%. Household credit at end-June comprised EUR 16.1 bn in consumer credit and EUR 17.4 bn in other loans.

New drawdowns of loans to non-financial corporations (excl. overdrafts and credit card credit) amounted in June to EUR 2.1 bn. The average interest rate on new corporate-loan drawdowns declined from May, to 2.18%. At the end of June, the stock of euro-denominated loans to non-financial corporations was EUR 88.0 bn, of which loans to housing corporations accounted for EUR 33.3 bn.

Deposits

The stock of household deposits at end-June totalled EUR 93.9 bn and the average interest rate on the deposits was 0.11%. Overnight deposits accounted for EUR 81.1 bn and deposits with agreed maturity for EUR 4.8 bn of the deposit stock. In June, households concluded EUR 0.2 bn of new agreements on deposits with agreed maturity, at an average interest rate of 0.34%.

The next news release will be published at 1 pm on 30 August 2019.

Related statistical data and ‑graphs are also available on the Bank of Finland website https://www.suomenpankki.fi/en/Statistics/mfi-balance-sheet/.