International banking statistics at end-September 2013

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) released today international banking statistics at end-September 2013.

The third quarter of 2013 saw another sizeable contraction in international banking activity. Between end-June and end-September 2013, the cross-border claims of BIS reporting banks fell by $508 billion, or 1.8%, to $28.5 trillion. Interoffice positions accounted for most of the contraction, continuing the steady decline in such positions evident since late 2011.

Where cross-border lending had previously grown, the latest data indicate a slowdown. Cross-border claims on non-bank borrowers - mainly non-bank financial institutions, governments and corporations - fell only slightly between end-June and end-September 2013, by $37 billion or 0.3%. That said, this was the second consecutive quarterly decline and partially reversed the modest increase seen in 2012. Banks' cross-border claims on emerging markets collectively increased by $57 billion or 1.6% in the third quarter; however, increases were concentrated in a few emerging market countries, notably China, whereas declines were widespread.

Developments in the latest international banking statistics are highlighted in the Statistical release<. Data are available on the BIS website<, via the BIS WebStats< query tool, or as tables< in PDF. Revised data and analyses of recent trends will be released in conjunction with the forthcoming BIS Quarterly Review on 9 March 2014. Data at end-December 2013 will be released no later than 25 April 2014.

Queries regarding the international banking statistics may be directed to statistics@bis.org<.