Japan's bank lending falls for 17th straight month in April

The level of outstanding loans held by Japanese banks including trust banks fell 0.9 percent in April from a year earlier, marking the 17th consecutive month of decline, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) said Thursday.


The BOJ's figures revealed that loans held by the country's four main categories of banks, including "shinkin" or credit unions, stood at a total of 458.187 trillion yen (5.65 trillion U. S. dollars), in the recording period.


The central bank also said that with the exception of loan write-offs, the overall loan balance dropped 0.7 percent from the same month a year earlier.


Separately, the BOJ said Thursday that the value of M2 money stock and CDs collected an annual 2.7 percent on year in April to 796.8 trillion yen, with the figure following a downwardly revised 2.6 percent increase a month earlier.


M3 money stock was up 2.1 percent on year following a 1.9 percent rise in March, the central bank said.


The balance of M3 includes currency in circulation, deposit money and so-called "quasi" money and CDs.


Japan's money supply or money stock, refers to the total amount of money available in the nation's economy at a particular point in time and is usually defined as currency in circulation and demand deposits.
(Source:http://news.xinhuanet.com)