At the end of June, the gross value of non-performing loans on Portuguese banks' balance sheets was €42.262 billion, down from €46.361 billion at the end of 2016.

The bad loans, net of impairments (provisions for losses) totalled €22.864 billion, in this case €2.495 billion less than at the end of 2016, or a drop of 9.8%.

The poor credit ratio was 15.5% in June, down from 17.2% in December, according to the APB, which on Wednesday released its Summary of Banking Sector Indicators.

The APB's understanding of non-performing loans is installments overdue for at least 90 days, loans that banks consider at high risk of default, impaired assets (losses) and loans in default.

Total loaons granted by banks at the end of June fell to €230.786 billion at the end of June.

Deposits rose in the first half to €246.858 billion, according to the same figures.

The Summary of Banking Sector Indicators is based on figures from the Bank of Portugal, Reuters and the APB itself.