India Non-Food Bank Credit Grows 18.8% in August

The Reserve Bank of India reported that non-food bank credit grew by 18.8% year-on-year in August 2026, a sharp increase from the 10.2% growth recorded during the same period the previous year. Data collected from 41 scheduled commercial banks indicates a broad-based expansion across services, industry, agriculture, and personal loans, signaling a shift in credit demand toward businesses and services over household borrowing.

The services sector experienced the fastest expansion at 24.3%, reaching Rs 63 lakh crore, fueled by trade, commercial real estate, and non-banking financial companies. Industrial credit rose 18.2% to Rs 45.8 lakh crore, with strong performance in chemicals, engineering, and infrastructure. Agriculture and allied activities saw a 17.2% jump to Rs 27.3 lakh crore.

Personal loan growth increased to 16.9%, with total outstandings reaching Rs 72.9 lakh crore. Within this segment, vehicle loans jumped 19.7% to Rs 7.8 lakh crore and housing loans grew 11.1% to Rs 35.6 lakh crore. Conversely, credit card growth decelerated to 3.6%, totaling approximately Rs 3 lakh crore. Gold loans moderated to an 83.2% increase, totaling Rs 5.6 lakh crore, down from a 130.2% surge a year earlier.