Brazil bank lending slows further in August as tight monetary policy bites

BRASILIA, Sept 29 (Reuters): Outstanding bank lending in Brazil continued to lose momentum in August, central bank data showed on Monday, as high interest rates helped cool activity in Latin America's largest economy.

Credit growth over the past 12 months slowed to 10.1 per cent in August, down from 10.8 per cent in July. The central bank projected last Thursday that annual loan growth would ease further, ending the year at 8.8 per cent.

While a steep slowdown from the 11.5 per cent expansion seen in 2024, the forecast marked a slight upward revision from a previous estimate of 8.5 per cent. "The pace of credit expansion has started to decline, partly in response to the more restrictive monetary policy cycle," the central bank said in its latest monetary policy report last week.