Philippine banks\' bad loan ratio remains low in October

The non-performing loan (NPL) ratio of Philippine universal and commercial banks (U/KBs) stayed low at 2.56 percent as of October 2013, the central bank said on Tuesday. The NPL registered in October was slightly lower than the 2.6 percent posted the previous month. The central bank said Philippine U/KBs kept their gross NPL ratio low amid a 12.6 percent year-on-year hike in their total loan portfolio (TLP) in October. TLP during the month reached 3.93 trillion pesos (88.17 billion U.S. dollars). The central bank also said Philippine U/KBs increased their reserves for bad loans in October. Gross NPL coverage ratio in October 2013 is at 130.53 percent, up from 126.23 percent posted in October 2012.