Banks’ agri-agra loan allocation still below legal threshold

LOANS made available by banks to the agriculture and agrarian reform sector rose by 8.9 percent at end-September 2016, but fell short of the threshold mandated under the law—reflecting lenders’ uncertainty in the sector.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data showed that the banking system set aside P435.76 billion in funds for agriculture and agrarian reform in January to September last year, P35.62 billion higher than the P400.13 billion allocated in the same period in 2015.