Interest-only periods maintained growth in housing loan stock in 2015
Annual growth in the housing loan stock was 2.5% in December 2015. The growth rate was maintained by the widespread use of interest-only periods on housing loans. In the absence of these renegotiated agreements, estimated growth would have been one percentage point slower. During the campaign for interest-only periods in 2015, households renegotiated EUR 12.8 bn worth of their housing loan agreements, equalling almost 14% of the housing-loan stock. Growth in the loan stock has also been supported by the low level of interest rates and shrinking loan margins. Overall, in December 2015, households’ new drawdowns of housing loans amounted to EUR 1.4 bn, which is about EUR 0.2 bn more than a year earlier in December. The average interest rate on new housing-loan drawdowns was 1.32%. At end-December, the stock of euro-denominated housing loans was EUR 92 bn. |
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The stock of households’ consumer credit has grown steadily in recent years. The growth rate of consumer credit was close to 5% in December 2015. Growth in other loans – including, among other things, leisure-home loans and loans to sole proprietors – has already been very slow for three years running. However, growth accelerated by almost one percentage point in the course of 2015, and was 2.7% in December. At end-December, household credit comprised EUR 14.1 bn in consumer credit and EUR 15.9 bn in other loans. New drawdowns of loans to non-financial corporations in December amounted to EUR 3.0 bn. At the end of the year, the stock of euro-denominated loans to non-financial corporations was EUR 72.5 bn, of which loans to housing corporations accounted for EUR 23.2 bn. The corporate-loan stock grew by 6%, i.e. the growth was stronger than in the euro area on average. The average interest rate on new corporate-loan drawdowns was 1.78% in December. |
Deposits At the end of December, the stock of household deposits totalled EUR 81.6 bn, and the average interest rate on the deposits was 0.3%. Overnight deposits accounted for EUR 56.5 bn and deposits with agreed maturity for EUR 10.5 bn of the total deposit stock. In December, households concluded EUR 0.8 bn of new agreements on deposits with agreed maturity, at an average interest rate of 0.85%. |
Key figures of Finnish MFIs' loans and deposits, preliminary data
| October, EUR million | November, EUR million | December, EUR million | December, 12-month change1, % | Average interest rate, % | |
| Loans to households2, stock | 121,657 | 121,792 | 121,982 | 2,8 | 1,73 |
| - of which housing loans | 91,691 | 91,832 | 91,955 | 2,5 | 1,24 |
| Loans to non-financial corporations2, stock | 71,708 | 72,689 | 72,502 | 6,0 | 1,63 |
| Deposits by households2, stock | 81,634 | 80,644 | 81,624 | 1,0 | 0,30 |
| Households' new drawdowns of housing loans | 1,506 | 1,427 | 1,359 | 1,32 |
1 Rate of change has been calculated from monthly differences in levels adjusted for classification and other revaluation changes.
2 Households also include non-profit institutions serving households; non-financial corporations also include housing corporations.
- Euro-denominated deposits and loans of euro area residents: stock, 12 month rate of change and average interest rate
- Euro-denominated loans and deposits of Finnish households
- New business on loans and new drawdowns of household loans
- Finnish contribution to the euro area monetary aggregates and their main counterparts
For further information, please contact
Markus Aaltonen, tel. +358 10 831 2395, email: markus.aaltonen(at)bof.fi.
The next news release will be published at 1.00 pm on 29 February 2016.
Related statistical data and graphs are also available on the Bank of Finland website:
http://www.suomenpankki.fi/link/2331b6266da3492f832ec75e0f654bd9.aspx?epslanguage=en.