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Wednesday, March 1, 1972
Repeating the words of Sir John Cowperthwaite in his 1971
Budget speech, Mr. Haddon-Cave said this was "remarkable evidence
of the growth of our wealth and of its wider distribution among the
people."
Bank deposits at the end of 1971 stood at $18,785 million
or two and a third times the low level of $7,846 million to which
they fell in September, 1967, having risen in 1971 more sharply,
at 26 per cent, than in any recent year since the post-emergency year
of 1968 when currency flowed back to the banks as confidence was
re-established.
Loans and advances in 1971, he continued, could hardly be
expected to keep pace with this "rapid widening" of the banks' credit
base; but nevertheless, they increased by 22 per cent to a record high
of $11,836 million, representing 63 per cent of deposits.
"So the banking system as a whole was well lent up, though
the pattern of advances shifted marginally away from manufacturing in
favour of other sectors, including finance houses, private individuals
and inter-bank lending.
"I am not entirely satisfied that the banking system is able
adequately to meet the legitimate credit needs of all types and sizes
of manufacturing enterprises and I shall have more to say on this later
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