The Sectoral Deployment of Bank Credit – November 2023, released by the RBI, reveals that on the personal loans front, there was a deceleration in growth to 18.6% in November 2023, down from 19.9% in the same period last year. This slowdown was primarily driven by a moderation in the growth of credit allocated to housing.
Compiled from 41 select scheduled commercial banks, the report offers a detailed overview of the current credit trends. The overall non-food bank credit registered a year-on-year growth of 16.3% in November 2023. This marks a slight dip from the 17.6% growth recorded in the corresponding month of the previous year.
A notable uptick was observed in the agricultural sector, where credit growth accelerated to 18.2% in November 2023, up from 14.0% a year ago.
In contrast, the industry sector experienced a more modest rise in credit growth, registering a 6.1% increase in November 2023 compared to a more robust 13.0% in November 2022. Within this sector, specific industries such as ‘basic metal & metal products’, ‘food processing’, and ‘textiles’ showed an acceleration in credit growth. However, areas like ‘all engineering’, ‘chemicals & chemical products’, and ‘infrastructure’ faced a deceleration.
The services sector maintained a strong growth pattern, with credit expanding by 21.9% year-on-year in November 2023, marginally higher than the 21.3% growth observed a year earlier. Despite this overall increase, there was a noticeable slowdown in credit growth to NBFCs.
