New consumer loans increase by half in Romania in July

Local banks granted new consumer loans worth EUR 360 million in July, up by 50% year-on-year, as the average interest rate for such loans went down by 2 percentage points in the past 12 months, to 9.4% per year. In June, local banks sold new consumer loans of EUR 451 million, recording an all time high. They granted even more loans than during the economic boom years before the onset of the crisis, reports local Ziarul Financiar. The new housing loans granted in July reached EUR 210 million, up by over one third compared to July 2014. Bank granted the loans at an average annual interest of 4%, down 1 percentage point compared to the interest rate recorded in July 2014. editor@romania-insider.com