Japanese banks report lower average lending rates in July

City banks’ interest rates for short-term and long-term loans decreased.

The average lending rates of Japanese banks went down in July compared to a month earlier, data from the Bank of Japan (BOJ) showed.

Interest rates of domestically licensed banks were 0.635% on average, lower than the 0.695% reported in June. This is, however, still higher than the 0.625% average lending rate recorded half a year ago.

Japan’s domestically licensed banks recorded an average short-term lending rate, or loans of less than a year, of 0.425% in July. This is a slight decrease from the 0.449% in June.

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City banks’ interest rate was 0.388% during the period, much lower than the 0.433% average short-term lending rate recorded a month earlier. Regional banks, however, logged a higher interest rate at 0.531% in July versus 0.523% in June.

Shinkin banks’ short-term interest rates also rose to 1.856% on average, from 1.809% on average.

For long-term loans, the lending rate was 0.816% in July, lower than the 0.855% a month earlier. City banks (0.816%), regional banks (0.837% and 0.973%), and shinkin banks (1.543%) all fell from a month earlier.