Overdue loans accumulated by individual customers totalled 221 million RON (69 million euros) at the end of May, double the value registered at the same time last year, according to data centralised by the NBR.
The increase in the volume of overdue loans accelerated in the first five months of this year reaching 54%, compared with a 12% increase between January and May 2006.
The amount of overdue loans has increased amid an a decline in the interest rate on new loans in RON by 1.85% over the past year, while the interest rate on new loans in euros fell by almost one percent over the same period.
According to the NBR data, even the average interest rate on already existing loans in euros fell by 0.93% between May 2006 and May 2007, despite the gradual rising trend of the euro reference rate on the international markets.
Statistics from the central bank even indicate interest declines for older mortgage loans, although most banks charge rates that are periodically adjusted in line with international reference rates, which has always had the knock-on effect of making credits more expensive.
However, this effect has largely been offset by the nominal appreciation of the RON, which is close to 8% against the beginning of the year. This means the increase in overdue loans cannot be blamed on the increase in the euro reference rate. In addition, even existing loans in RON witnessed fluctuations in their respective interest rates, depending on the conditions on the monetary market, also acknowledging the fact that banks take reference rates into account.
Still, even so, data published by the BNR reveals a substantial decline in the cost of existing loans, from an average interest rate of 16.75% in May 2006 to 14.74% in May 2007, which is by two percent.
One thing is certain however; that the credit risk rate across the banking system
