TIRANA, Nov. 24 – With lending to households having registered only a modest increase in the first three quarters of this year, banks are focusing on home loans rather than consumer loans, according to central bank data.
Home loans in the region of Tirana, which accounts for 60 percent of total credit to households, registered a significant 27 percent in the third quarter of this year when they climbed to a total stock of 54.4 billion (€392 mln), up from 42.8 billion lek (€309 mln) during the same period last year.
A significant drop in loan interest rates both in the national currency and in euro as key interest rates on lek and Europe’s single currency stand at a record lows has also influenced on the recovery of demand for new home loans and easier lending standards applied by the 16 commercial banks operating in Albania.
By contrast, consumer loans in Tirana dropped by 20 percent year-on-year to 33.6 billion lek (€242 mln) at the end of the third quarter of 2015.
The situation in the other key regions of Durres, Fier, Vlore and Shkoder was similar with a boost in home loans and a contraction in consumer loans.
Lending to households recovered by only 2.4 percent in the third quarter of this year, but continued remaining below the 2011 levels.
