More consumers granted credit

Johannesburg - A 31% increase in credit was granted to consumers between last March and this March, the National Credit Regulator (NCR) said on Wednesday.

The number of credit applications, however, decreased by more 3% year-on-year.

The regulator released its Consumer Credit Market and Credit Bureau Monitor annual reports, based on data submitted by registered credit providers and credit bureaus.

The data showed that as of March 2011, the total outstanding consumer credit in South Africa was R1.21 trillion, owed overwhelmingly to banks.

Of this, mortgages accounted for the bulk share at about 63.6%, secured credit at about 18.7%, credit facilities at about 11%, unsecured credit at about 6.7% and short-term credit at about 0.06%.

The NCR reported that in the first quarter of 2011, 53.6% of consumers were in good standing while 46.4% had impaired records.

Almost 200 million enquiries were made on credit records, attributing an increase of about 60% compared to March 2010.