The volume of loans and credit facilities granted by retail banks to different economic sectors grew by 13.5 per cent to top BD6.4 billion ($16.9 billion) last year, up from BD5.7 billion in 2010.

Loans and credit facilities awarded to the business sector also grew by 10.7 per cent compared with 2010 - making up 63 per cent of the overall loans.

The industrial sector attracted 36.7 per cent of the loans and credit facilities, compared with the financial non-banking sector (10.2 per cent) and the trade sector (6.1 per cent).

According to a report released recently by the Central Bank of Bahrain, personal loans and credit facilities also increased by 23.4 per cent.

The average interest rates on business loans decreased by 32.2 per cent, dropping to 7.17 per cent in 2010 to 4.86 per cent last year.

The average rates on personal loans also decreased by 11.5 per cent , dropping from 7.10 per cent in 2010 down from 6.28 per cent last year.-TradeArabia News Service