Japanese banks' average rate on outstanding loans rises to 1.510% in August

Serguey Asael Shinder04 October 2026, 13:082 min read

The average interest rate on loans outstanding at Japan's domestically licensed banks rose to 1.510% at the end of August, from 1.483% in July and 1.325% in March, according to the Bank of Japan's monthly statistics on average contract interest rates, released on 2 October.

Outstanding loans. The rate on the whole stock of loans has risen every month in the table, which starts in March 2026. By type of bank at the end of August:

• city banks 1.553% (July 1.534%),
• regional banks 1.434% (1.400%),
• second-tier regional banks 1.515% (1.477%). For domestically licensed banks, the short-term stock rate was 1.521% and the long-term rate 1.424%, against 1.209% and 1.244% in March. The total for shinkin banks reached 1.852%, from 1.724% in March. The average rate on overdrafts at domestically licensed banks was 2.050%.

New loans. Rates on loans made during the month are more volatile, because they depend on which loans happen to be written. The total for new loans and discounts at domestically licensed banks was 1.782% in August, after 1.706% in July and 1.813% in March. New short-term lending averaged 1.427%, new long-term lending 1.999%. At city banks the total for new loans was 1.882%; at shinkin banks 2.254%.

What the figures cover. New-loan rates are averages of loans, including rollovers, made during the month and exclude overdrafts; stock rates are averages at the end of the month. Domestically licensed banks exclude the Resolution and Collection Corporation and Japan Post Bank. City banks are Mizuho, MUFG, Sumitomo Mitsui, Resona and Saitama Resona. Shinkin figures are compiled by the National Association of Shinkin Banks. Short-term means under one year.

What it means

The stock rate is the slower, steadier measure: it moves as old loans mature and are replaced at current rates, which is why it has risen month after month while new-loan rates went up and down. The table shows how far that repricing has gone since March; it does not say how far it has left to run, and the data carry no forecast.