Bank credit to medium-sized firms rose 21 per cent YoY in February even as a contraction (-1.5 per cent) in loans to large industrial units dragged credit disbursement to industry.
In January this year, loans to large units were in the contraction zone (-2.5 per cent), while for mid-sized entities it was 19.1 per cent.
Credit to micro and small enterprises also inched up to 1.5 per cent in February, from 0.9 per cent in January, according to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data.
Bankers said there is pick-up in credit due to a host of factors, including economic recovery, regulatory support, government guarantees for emergency credit and liquidity support.
The outstanding loans to large corporations continue to shrink as many of them have repaid existing loans, taking advantage of lower interest rates in a system flush with liquidity. While demand for working capital is rising, there is very little activity on the capital expenditure side, bankers said.
Continuing its uptrend, credit growth to agriculture and allied activities accelerated to 10.2 per cent in February (5.5 per cent in February 2020) from 9.9 per cent in January 2021. A good monsoon and robust rural economy came as a major relief to the pandemic-battered economy.
Credit growth to the services sector accelerated to 9.3 per cent in February (6.9 per cent in February 2020) against 8.4 per cent in January 2021.
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU