Thailand’s BAAC grants fewest loans this year
Loans granted by the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) during the first half of 2021 was the lowest in three to five years owing to low economic activity due to Covid-19.
So far, the bank has only granted new credit worth around 9 billion baht or just 15.77 per cent of its full-year target of 57 billion baht, BAAC president Tanaratt Ngamvalairatt said on Monday.
Farmers have been earning very little because their exports have been blocked due to sealing measures employed by different countries. At the same time, Thailand’s tourism industry has slowed down, with many operators in the service sector such as restaurants, bars and hotels shutting down. Stimulus and remedy packages offered by the government have also reduced the number of people seeking loans, he said.
BAAC’s non-performing loans (NPLs) as of September 30 stood at 4.2 per cent of outstanding credit. This was slightly higher than the 3.9 per cent in the same period last year. However, Tanaratt reckons NPLs will drop to 4 per cent by the end of the year.
