DUSHANBE, April 10, 2012, Asia-Plus — According to the National Bank of Tajikistan (NBT), the remainder of loans provided by Tajik banks rose 9.7 percent in a year to March 1, 2012, reaching more than 4.35 billion somoni (equivalent to some 920 million U.S. dollars).
The amount of loans provided in the national currency, the somoni, is more than 1.86 billion somoni and the amount of loans provided in foreign currencies is equal to some 2.5 billion somoni.
In the structure of the remainder, a share of long-term loans was 30.2 percent, while the share of short-term loans was 69.8 percent, the Tajik central bank source noted.
The weighted average interest rate for loans provided in the national currency was 19.7 percent and the weighted average interest rate for loans provided in foreign currencies was 24 percent.
Over the first two months of this year, local banks have reportedly provided 1.447 billion somoni in microloans, which is 33 percent more than in the same period last year.

