BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – An amount of E19.3 billion has been extended to the country’s private sector as credit.
According to the Monthly Statistical Release March/April 2024, this showed a monthly increase of 3.3 percent and a yearly increase of 10 percent. “Credit extended to the private sector increased by 3.3 per cent from the previous month and 10.3 per cent relative to the previous year to close at E19.3 billion at the end of March 2024,” states part of the report.
Contributing to the growth in private sector credit, according to the report, were all components, namely: credit to other sectors of the economy, businesses and households & non-profit institutions serving households (NPISH).
Credit extended to other sectors of the economy improved by 11.3 percent month-on month and 17.2 percent year-on-year to settle at E1.1 billion at the end of March 2024. Responsible for the month-on-month growth was credit to public nonfinancial corporations which rose by 38.2 per cent to reach E443.0 million.
The increase was partly countered by a decline in credit to local government and other financial corporations, which fell by 3.8 percent to E76.3 million and 1.7 percent to E561.3 million, respectively. Credit extended to businesses reflected an increase of 5.4 per cent month-on-month and 13.8 per cent year-on-year to settle at E9.7 billion at the end of March 2024.
Contributing to the increase in credit to businesses were the following subsectors: distribution and tourism (14.0 percent), transport and communication (6.8 percent), agriculture and forestry (4.9 percent), construction (2.7 percent) community, social and personal services (1.9 percent), as well as real estate (0.4 per cent). However, a contraction was observed in the following subsectors: mining and quarrying (-1.8 percent) and manufacturing (-1.2 per cent).
A breakdown of credit to businesses by size indicates that credit to large enterprises grew by 6.3 per cent month-on-month and 9.4 per cent year-on-year to settle at E6.6 billion at the end of March 2024. Credit to small & medium enterprises (SMEs) also expanded by 3.6 per cent month-on-month and an impressive 24.1 per cent year-on-year to reach E3.2 billion at the end of March 2024.
Credit extended to households and NPISH amounted to E8.5 billion at the end of March 2024, reflecting an increase of 0.1 percent month-on-month and 5.7 percent year-on year. The month-on-month improvement was driven by motor vehicle and housing loans, which grew by 0.9 percent to E1.1 billion and 0.8 percent to E4.3 billion, respectively. However, other personal (unsecured) loans recorded a decline of 1.1 percent to close at E3.1 billion at the end of March 2024.
