Ljubljana - Banks in Slovenia posted a total of EUR 174 million in pre-tax profit in the first five months of the year, which is 18.2% less than in the same period last year due to higher operating costs and the creation of net impairments and provisions, shows the monthly report by Banka Slovenije.

The central bank said that the decrease was mostly a consequence of slightly higher operating costs and the creation of net impairments and provisions in the amount of EUR 12.8 million.

Banka Slovenije noted that in the five months of last year, banks operating in Slovenia had released impairments and provisions, adding that the share of net impairments and provisions in gross income was currently very low, under 3%.

Deposits by the non-banking sector increased by EUR 392 million in May, and their year-on-year growth continued to slow down. This was mainly due to an increase in household deposits, which were by EUR 305 million higher than in April.

On the other hand, the volume of deposits by non-financial companies decreased by EUR 140 million in May, as did their year-on-year growth, while companies still hold as many as EUR 8.5 billion in deposits in banks in Slovenia.

Lending to the non-banking sector also increased significantly in May, with the year-on-year growth standing at 10.5%. The growth of loans to non-financial entities on an annual basis reached 11.9% in May and remained one of the highest in the eurozone.

The growing trend also continued when it comes to loans to households, whose volume increased by 7.6% percent year-on-year in April, mostly due to a significant growth in housing loans, whose volume in April was up by 11.7% in April on an annual basis.

On the other hand, the volume of consumer loans stagnated in May on a monthly basis, and was 2.8% lower year-on-year.

The total assets of banks in Slovenia at the end of May amounted to EUR 48.8 billion, which is an increase of EUR 522 million compared to the beginning of the year.