Non-food bank credit grows 15.1% in July: RBI data

Mumbai: Banks' non-food credit registered a growth of 15.1 per cent in July as compared to 5.1 per cent a year ago, RBI data showed.

Loans to agriculture and allied activities improved to 13.2 per cent in July 2022 from 11.1 per cent in the year-ago period, according to the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Sectoral Deployment of Bank Credit for July 2022 released on Tuesday. The growth in credit to industry accelerated to 10.5 per cent in July 2022 from 0.4 per cent in July last year. Size-wise, credit to large industry grew by 5.2 per cent against a contraction of 3.8 per cent in the preceding year.

Medium industries recorded a growth in credit of 36.8 per cent in July 2022 as compared with 59 per cent previous year, while growth to micro and small industries accelerated to 28.3 per cent from 10.5 per cent during the same period, the data showed. Within industry, growth in loans to all engineering, basic metal & metal products, cement & cement products, chemicals & chemical products, food processing, infrastructure, leather & leather products, mining and quarrying, rubber, plastic & its products, vehicles, vehicle parts & transport equipment and wood & wood products accelerated in July 2022 as compared with the corresponding month of the previous year.

However, growth in advances to beverage & tobacco, construction, gems & jewellery, glass & glassware, paper & paper products, petroleum, coal products and nuclear fuels and textiles contracted, the data showed. The growth in credit to services sector improved to 16.5 per cent in July 2022 from 3.8 per cent a year ago, mainly due to improved credit off take to non-banking financial companies and transport operators, it showed. Growth in the personal loans sector was robust at 18.8 per cent in July 2022 vis-a-vis 11.9 per cent in July 2021, supported by housing and vehicle loans segments.