Loans to the private sector, a measure of the financial sector’s contribution to the real economy, grew at the fastest pace in four months in September, providing a much-needed boost after a quarter in which the indicator recorded its slowest expansion since the second quarter of 2021.
Total outstanding loans to the private sector stood at Shs22.9tn ($6.1bn) at the end of the month, up 8.1 per cent on the same period last year, according to data from the Bank of Uganda. In August, credit to the private sector grew by 7.1 per cent year on year, up from 6.1 per cent in July.
Credit to the private sector rose 7.1 per cent in the quarter to September compared with the same period in 2022, the slowest quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2021, when private sector lending rose 6.9 per cent on the year.
Commercial bank credit to the private sector grew at an annual rate of 7.7 per cent in the month to reach Sh20.2tn, the fastest growth rate in four months.
($1 = Shs3761.21, on 29 September 2023)
