Private sector credit grows sedately

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Credit growth plodded along at a sedate pace in June, figures from the Reserve Bank of Australia show.

The amount of credit provided by domestic financial institutions in June was 0.4 per cent higher in June, after rising by 0.3 per cent in May, according to the seasonally adjusted figures released on Wednesday.

Credit in June was up by 3.1 per cent from a year before, a monthly average of 0.25 per cent, so the latest monthly rate was a bit above the recent norm, but not by much.

The main reason for the slightly above-average rise was a jump in business credit, which increased by 0.5 per cent in June after a 0.2 per cent gain in May.

But this could easily be the result of the usual volatility seen in this component of credit.

Annual growth in business credit came in at a mere 0.9 per cent, a growth rate previously seen only during recessions, financial crises or global share market crashes.

In other words, there’s nothing in the data to suggest that either borrowers or lenders have suddenly taken the bait of low interest rates set by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA).

The numbers will not persuade anyone that the interest rate cut apparently flagged by Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) governor Glenn Stevens this week might be postponed beyond Tuesday, when the RBA’s board is due to hold its monthly monetary policy meeting.