Macao's new approved residential mortgage loans drop by 11.8 pct in December 2019
Xinhua
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File photo: Macau's city view. (Photo: Xinhua)

MACAO, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) -- The new approvals of residential mortgage loans (RMLs) in Macao decreased in December 2019, while those of commercial real estate loans (CRELs) increased, the special administrative region's monetary watchdog said here on Tuesday.

According to statistics released by the Monetary Authority of Macao, the new RMLs approved by Macao banks dropped by 11.8 percent month-to-month to 3.0 billion patacas (about 374.0 million U.S. dollars). Of which, new RMLs to residents, representing 96.6 percent of the total, fell by 14.1 percent to 2.9 billion patacas.

The monthly average of new RMLs approved between October and December 2019 was 3.3 billion patacas, down by 6.6 percent from the previous period from September to November 2019.

The new CRELs rose by 3.4 percent month-to-month to 2.4 billion patacas. Within this total, new CRELs to residents, which occupied 99.8 percent of the total, increased by 4.2 percent to 2.4 billion patacas.

The monthly average of new CRELs approved between October and December 2019 was 3.7 billion patacas, down by 3.9 percent as compared with the previous period from September to November 2019.

At the end of December 2019, the delinquency ratio for RMLs stood at 0.23 percent, virtually unchanged from a month ago but up by 0.07 percentage points over a year earlier. The ratio for CRELs remained at 0.38 percent from a month ago, but up by 0.23 percentage points from the end of December 2018. (1 U.S. dollar equals 8.02 patacas)