LOANS
Bulgarian banks gave 723.1 million leva worth of new loans in October, Dnevnik daily reported, quoting Bulgarian National Bank data. New corporate loans topped 316 million leva while households borrowed 339 million leva. The remaining 68 million leva went to Bulgarian financial companies. Loans to the non-government sector added up to 48.5 billion leva, or 73 per cent of gross domestic product, easing the growth rate to 44.5 per cent year-on-year from 47.8 per cent year-on-year in September. Loans to businesses rose 46.4 per cent to just more than 30 billion leva, slowing from 50.2 per cent in September. Household loans gained 40.7 per cent to 17.92 billion leva compared to 43.8 per cent for the previous month.
DEPOSITS
Bulgarian banks have further raised interest rates and shortened terms on their deposits, Dnevnik daily reported. A nine per cent return is now available with six- and even five-month deposits, which just two months earlier was available on deposits of two or three years. United Bulgarian Bank, majority-owned by the National Bank of Greece, is offering a nine per cent annual rate on its five-month leva-denominated deposit in a promotion running until December 31. Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria extended until December 31 its term deposit promotion and raised rates on one-year and six-month leva- and euro-denominated deposits.KBC subsidiary EIBanks new six-month Si Major deposit comes with a 9.5 per cent interest rate, while locally-owned First Investment Bank offers nine per cent return on its six-month Serious Deposit.
LEASING SLOWING DOWN
Bulgarias leasing market was slowing down as companies were rethinking investment policies, UniCredit Leasing chief executive Plamen Minev told Dnevnik daily on November 24. Some leasing firms have reduced new leasing contracts and the bulk were putting applicants under more scrutiny, Minev said. Leasing companies have also tightened the co-funding requirement asking companies to pay 20-30 per cent or more compared to 10-20 per cent before the global financial crisis broke.
