End-November, the combined loss in the system was RON900 million (over EUR200 million), and banks succeeded to almost halve the negative result in December.
Provisions fell RON400 million in December, from RON31 billion to RON30.6 billion. They increased by RON7 billion last year.
Banks’ net assets rose 4% in the last month of 2011 to RON354 billion, or about 65% of the gross domestic product.
Last year, local banks laid off 1,000 employees (1.5% of the total), of whom 350 left the system in December alone.
They also closed over 2% of their network and the number of subsidiaries was reduced from 6,170 to 6,040.
Romanian banks reported a combined net loss of RON800 million lei (roughly EUR200 million) in the third quarter of 2011, versus a profit of RON95.4 million a quarter earlier.
Net risk costs continued to increase and broke through the RON30 billion threshold at the end of September, on higher non-performing loans.
In the third quarter alone, Romanian banks booked additional provisions of RON3 billion.
Romania’s banking system has switched to a combined loss of RON516 million in 2010, the first negative result in 11 years. (EUR1=RON4.347)