Lending by banks logged a year-on-year decline of 5.2 percent in October, marking the 58th straight month of decline, the Bank of Japan said Monday.
The average daily lending balance for the month came to 416.61 trillion yen, according to a preliminary report released by the central bank.
The decline was attributed by analysts to weak demand among businesses for new capital investment funds, allied to a reluctance by banks to lend due to the need to book large loan-loss charges amid a fragile economy.