NPL In Central Sulawesi 2.26 Pct Of Total Credit

Palu, Sept 11 (ANTARA) - Non performing loans recorded by banks in Central Sulawesi totaled Rp274.5 billion or 2.26 percent of bank outstanding credits of Rp12,144 billion by the end of June. Head of Bank Indonesia`s representative in Central Sulawesi Rahmat Hernowo said the NPL was down 7.6 percent from Rp297 billion or 2.6 percent by the end of March. Averagely, NPL has tended to decline in Central Sulawesi from quarter to quarter. By the end of the first quarter, NPL were recorded at Rp347.79 billion or 3.2 percent , down to Rp309.6 billion or 2.77 percent by the end of the last quarter in 2011. In the first quarter of 2012, NPL fell again to Rp297 billion or 2.6 percent and again to Rp274.5 billion or 2.26 percent by the end of the second quarter of 2012. Rahmat said with the NPL rate Central Sulawesi`s banking industry was categorized as healthy as the rate was still below the maximum rate of 0.5 percent set by the central bank for healthy banks. He said the total outstanding credit of Rp12,144 billion by the end of June was 6.7 percent larger than Rp11,378 billion three months earlier. He said the credits included Rp5,325.9 billion in working capital credits, Rp5,714.9 billion in consumer credits and Rp1,103.9 billion in investment credits . Meanwhile, third party funds held by banks in the province by the end of June reached Rp10,064 billion or an increase of 7.8 percent from Rp9,338 billion three months earlier. "The loan to deposit (LDR) ratio, therefore was 120.7 percent showing banks in Central Sulawesi have played well their intermediacy role," Rachmat said. The total asset of banks in the province reached Rp15,792 billion by the end of June or an increase of 6.7 percent from Rp14,802.3 billion three months earlier. Based on data by the end of June 2012, there were 968,517 saving accounts in all banks in the province. The number is relatively small or only 36 percent of the Central Sulawesi`s population of 2.635 million, Rachmat said.