According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, new approvals of residential mortgage loans (RMLs) and commercial real estate loans (CRELs) both decreased in September 2019. With regard to the outstanding balances, both RMLs and CRELs witnessed increases.
New lending approved
In September 2019, new RMLs approved by Macao banks fell by 9.4% month-to-month to MOP3.72 billion. Of which, new RMLs to residents, representing 98.6% of the total, dropped by 9.3% to MOP3.67 billion; the non-resident component also decreased by 14.2% to MOP51.9 million. The monthly average of new RMLs approved between July and September 2019 was MOP4.2 billion, down by 15.6% from the previous period (June to August 2019).
New RMLs collateralised by uncompleted units (i.e. equitable mortgage) increased month-to-month by 5.6% to MOP264.6 million. On an annual basis, new equitable mortgage approved rose by 53.9%.
New CRELs dropped by 11.7% month-to-month to MOP2.9 billion. Within this total, new CRELs to residents, which occupied 89.8% of the total, decreased by 20.3% to MOP2.6 billion whereas those to non-residents grew to MOP295.3 million. The monthly average of new CRELs approved between July and September 2019 was MOP3.0 billion, down by 12.0% as compared with the previous period (June to August 2019).
Outstanding balances
As at end-September 2019, the outstanding value of RMLs was MOP228.3 billion, which increased by 0.8% from a month earlier or 7.5% from a year ago. Of which, the resident component made up 93.4% of the total. When compared with the previous month, outstanding RMLs to residents rose by 0.9% whereas those to non-residents dropped by 1.2%.
The outstanding value of CRELs was MOP183.2 billion, up by 1.2% month-to-month but down by 3.8% from a year earlier. Residents accounted for 93.3% of the loans. Compared with a month earlier, outstanding CRELs to residents and non-residents rose by 1.2% and 1.4% respectively.
Delinquency ratios
At the end of September 2019, the delinquency ratio for RMLs stood at 0.24%, up by 0.01 percentage point from a month ago or 0.05 percentage points over a year earlier. The ratio for CRELs was 0.37%, up by 0.08 percentage points from a month ago or 0.22 percentage points from end-September 2018.