At the end of January, the volume of loans to non-government customers was at 218.7 billion lei (EUR48.5 billion), down 0.7% in real terms from the month before, central bank data showed Monday.
In 2013, the private lending figures fell by 4.7% in real terms to RON218.5 billion at the end of December.
The central bank is trying to restart the lending activity, which should fuel the domestic demand. Since July 2013, the bank has lowered its key monetary policy rate in six steps to a record low of 3.5%. It has also cut the minimum reserve requirement ratios at the beginning of the year, freeing EUR1 billion from its coffers, but to little avail.
Private loans in Romanian lei edged down 0.2% on the month in January, while foreign currency loans fell 0.3% when expressed in lei. When expressed in euros, foreign currency lending was down 0.5%, the central bank data showed.
Compared with January 2013, non-government lending decreased by 3.1% in real terms. Loans in Romanian lei inched down 0.5% on the year in January, but hard currency loans were down 4.3% when expressed in lei and 6.8% when expressed in euros.
Deposits of non-government resident customers inched 0.2% lower on the month to RON215.1 billion in January.
End-January, government credit reached RON83 billion, up 7.1% in real terms from the year-earlier month. (EUR1=RON4.5101)