In the 1st quarter of 2023
Ratios of overdue credit and the balance of loans granted to non-financial corporations and households decreased compared to the same period last year
According to data released by Banco de Portugal, the balance of loans granted to non-financial corporations (NFCs) at the end of the 1st quarter of 2023 amounted to 2.0 billion euros, showing a decrease of 102.3 million euros compared to the end of March 2022 and a decline of 28.1 million euros compared to December 2022.
The ratio of overdue credit for NFCs remained unchanged compared to the end of 2022, standing at 2.1% at the end of the reference period. However, compared to the same quarter last year, there was a decrease of 0.3 percentage points (pp). At the national level, this indicator increased by 0.1 pp compared to the previous quarter and dropped by 0.1 pp year-on-year, reaching 2.1% at the end of the 1st quarter of 2023. The amount of non-performing loans within non-financial corporations headquartered in the Region totalled 42.1 million euros during the reference period, representing an increase of 0.4 million euros compared to December last year and a decrease of 6.7 million euros compared to March of the previous year.
The percentage of debtors in the NFC sector with overdue loans at the end of March 2023 was 15.6%, which is higher than the national average of 14.9% in the same period. Compared to March 2022, this indicator increased by 1.3 pp in the Region.
In the households’ sector and Non-Profit Institutions Serving Families (NPISH), there was a year-on-year reduction of 182.3 million euros in the balance of loans granted, amounting to 3.1 billion euros at the end of the 1st quarter of 2023. When comparing the balance with the previous quarter, there was also a decline of approximately 6.3 million euros. Further analysis reveals that 72.3% of that balance pertained to the housing segment, while the remaining 27.7% was allocated to consumption and other purposes.
Regarding overdue loans in the housing segment, they did not exceed 6.9 million euros, representing a ratio of overdue loans of 0.3%. This maintains the historical minimum according to the available data series, which starts in March 2009. Between March 2022 and March 2023, the ratio of overdue housing loans decreased by 0.2 pp in the region.
The number of debtors in the institutional sector of households and NPISH increased compared to the same quarter last year, reaching 100.9 thousand (+0.8 thousand). At the end of the 1st quarter of 2023, there were approximately 43.7 thousand debtors with housing loans (-0.7 thousand debtors) and 84.5 thousand with consumer loans and loans for other purposes (+1.0 thousand).
