Japan's bank lending growth accelerated in May, with total loans and discounts at major, regional and shinkin banks rising 5.7% year over year to 670.8 trillion yen, according to preliminary data released by the Bank of Japan on Monday.
The pace of growth accelerated from the 5.4% expansion in April, and was higher than the consensus forecast of 5.6%, according to Investing.com.
Loans at major and regional banks alone rose 6.3% to 591.4 trillion yen in May. Major banks led the increase, with lending climbing 8.7% to 275.3 trillion yen, while regional banks posted 4.3% growth to 316 trillion yen. Foreign banks' yen-denominated lending rose 24.6% to 7.1 trillion yen.
On the deposits side, deposits and certificates of deposit at city, regional and shinkin banks rose 2.1% year over year to 1,082.6 trillion yen in May.