Consumer loans creep up at its lowest pace since 2009

It inched up by only 0.2% in December.

Banking system data for December reflected a challenging year for Singapore banks.

According to Maybank KimEng, while system loans grew in the month for the first time in 2016, it was partly due to the low base in December 2015.

To recall, loans rose 0.5% YoY in December, the first YoY increase in 2016. The improvement was seen across all sectors, mainly from manufacturing, building & construction, and financial institutions.

Corporate loans grew 0.6% YoY, but consumer sentiment remained weak, as consumer loans rose only 0.2% YoY, the slowest pace since September 2009.

Meanwhile, system deposits grew 4%, with Domestic Banking Unit and Asian Currency Unit deposit trending 6.5% and 1.5% upwards.