Arrears on population and companies' loans increased in March by 1.3 percent compared to the previous month in Romania, up to EUR 4.27 billion, according to the Romanian Central Bank (BNR). The share of arrears in total loans was 8.7 percent.

The balance of arrears reached EUR 4.2 billion at the end of February, while their share in total loans was 8.4 percent. Late last year, the share of arrears in total loans was 7.7 percent.

The balance of arrears on loans in national currency was in March of RON 8.23 billion (the equivalent of EUR 1.9 billion), which means 10.7 percent of the total loans in RON, while arrears on loans in foreign currency amounted to EUR 2.2 billion.

The credit balance of the population and companies stood at EUR 49.3 billion at the end of March, compared to EUR 50 billion at the end of February.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com