Auto loans up 5.5% as of June

MANILA, Philippines - Consumers braved the global financial turmoil, as seen in the increase in automobile loans during the second quarter of the year, latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed.

As of end-June 2009, total automobile loans of universal and commercial banks and thrift banks, inclusive of non-bank subsidiaries amounted to P86.2 billion, up by 5.5 percent from the previous quarter’s P81.8 billion.

Compared to the previous year’s level of P79.1 billion, the latest figure is nine percent higher, the BSP also said.

The proportion of auto loans to banks’ total loan portfolio (TLP) rose to 3.3 percent from the previous quarter’s 3.2 percent but dropped from the year ratio of 3.4 percent ratio, with the faster year-on-year growth in the total loan portfolio.

Among the banks, thrift banks accounted for the majority of total auto loans at 55.7 percent. Universal and commercial banks held a 44.2 percent share while non-bank subsidiaries accounted for the balance of 0.1 percent.

Loan quality improved as the non-performing auto loans to total auto loans ratio slid to 5.1 percent from the previous quarter’s 5.2 percent. This took place as the 4.1 percent growth in non-performing auto loans to P4.4 billion was outpaced by the larger hike in auto loans.

Meantime, the non-performing auto loans to total non-performing loans (NPL) ratio stood at 3.2 percent (up from last quarter’s 3.1 percent and year ago’s 3.0 percent). On the other hand, the non-performing auto loans to the total loan portfolio ratio was maintained at 0.2 percent in the three comparative periods.

The BSP said that universal and commercial banks (inclusive of subsidiaries) reported better non-performing auto loans to total auto loans ratio (at five percent) and non-performing auto loans to the total loan portfolio ratio (at 0.2 percent) compared to thrift banks ratios of 6.8 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.

Thrift banks, on the other hand, posted a favorably lower non-performing auto loans to total non-performing loans ratio of 2.7 percent as against universal and commercial banks’ ratio of 3.3 percent.