Bank credit to industry surges 8.5% in March: RBI Data

Bank credit to industry witnessed annual growth of 8.5 per cent in March, according to data released by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday. However, re was moderation in personal loans segment during same period.

Comparatively, growth in credit to industry and personal loans segment in March 2023 stood at 5.6 per cent and 21 per cent respectively.

RBI noted that among major industries, credit growth to sectors such as 'chemicals and chemical products', 'food processing', and 'infrastructure' accelerated in March 2024 compared to corresponding month of previous year. Conversely, credit growth to 'basic metal and metal products' sector moderated.

In contrast, credit growth to agriculture and allied activities remained robust at 20.1 per cent in March 2024, up from 15.4 per cent a year ago.

However, growth rate of personal loans moderated to 17.7 per cent in March 2024, primarily due to decelerated growth in vehicle loans and or personal loans.

On services front, credit growth improved to 20.2 per cent from 19.6 per cent in March last year, driven by higher growth in credit to "transport operators" and "commercial real estate".

data also indicated that credit growth to non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) and tre decelerated in March 2024 compared to previous year.

Overall, non-food bank credit registered a growth of 16.3 per cent in March 2024, up from 15.4 per cent a year ago. This data is collected from 41 select banks, which account for about 95 per cent of total non-food credit deployed by all scheduled commercial banks, as per RBI.

(With PTI inputs)