Spain's bad loan ratio hits new record

Spain's non-performing loan rate rose to a new record high of 11.97 percent in July, the Bank of Spain said on Wednesday. Loans that fell into arrears in the Spanish banking system increased by 0.3 percent on a monthly basis, from 176.420 billion euros (about 235.4 billion U.S. dollars) in June to 178.643 billion euros in July. Meanwhile, in annual terms, Spain's non-performing loan rate rose from 10.09 percent in July 2012 to 11.97 percent in July 2013. Analysts expect the ratio to continue to rise for the rest of this year. Spain's bad loan ratio had broken a record in November 2012 when it reached 11.38 percent, but it decreased in December 2012 and February 2013 thanks to transfers of toxic assets to the Spanish "bad bank" (SAREB).