Clave Digital reports that as the third quarter of 2005 begins the trend towards a fast paced build up of deposits continues, whereas the loan portfolios remain notably mediocre. During the past five months, commercial banks have accumulated deposits worth RD$20.8 billion. This is good news because it is a reflection of public confidence in the system. However, it is worrying to see what is happening with the loans, which continue to move extremely slowly presenting an absolute growth of only RD$2.8 million. In relative terms, deposits grew 8.2% whereas loans only grew 1.8%. In comparison, during the first semester of 2004, deposits grew 15.7% and loans grew 6.1% – a much more reasonable ratio. Superintendent of Banks Rafael Camilo sustains that this is not due to the new asset evaluation regulation as loans began to slow down before the norm went into effect. He claims it is due to a “cooling down” of economic activities. To activate borrowing, banks are pushing consumer loans. A recent mortgage fair generated almost RD$3 billion in borrowing over a two-week period.