(Business in Cameroon) - Volume of loans granted by Banks within the Cemac region dropped by 11.9% between June 2017 and June 2018, the central bank Beac indicated in its latest report.

“The data reported by credit institutions show that the aggregate amount of new loans granted during the first half of 2018 is XAF4,500.2 billion (...), down 6.03% compared to the previous 6 months when this amount was XAF 4,788.76 billion. Year-on-year, the decline in lending activity in CEMAC is becoming more pronounced, -11.91%, loans being valued at XAF5,108.71 billion in the first half of 2017,” the report details.

Most of these loans, it is reported, were granted by banks, which concentrate nearly 99.37% of market share, XAF4,471.97 billion, against 0.63% of market share, XAF28.25 billion of new loans granted by the 7 financial institutions operating in the sub-region.

This reluctance of Cemac credit institutions to grant loans can be explained by the deterioration of the credit portfolio in banks in recent times. Indeed, according to the BEAC, the rate of outstanding receivables in the CEMAC zone increased again by 9.2% at the end of October 2018, reaching XAF133.5 billion.

Brice R. Mbodiam