Brazil's bank lending picks up in April despite tight borrowing costs

BRASILIA, May 29 (Reuters) - Brazilian bank lending accelerated in April despite tight borrowing costs, central bank data showed on Thursday, highlighting the resilience of economic activity even after aggressive monetary tightening.

Outstanding credit rose 0.7% from the previous month to 6.6 trillion reais ($1.16 trillion).

On a 12-month basis, credit growth picked up to 11.5% from 11.1% in March, driven by a 12.4% increase in household loans. Corporate lending rose 10.2%, faster than the previous month.

The expansion came despite a sharp interest rate hiking cycle led by the central bank to cool economic activity and tame inflation.

Since September, policymakers have raised the benchmark Selic rate by 425 basis points to 14.75%, its highest level in nearly two decades.

On Thursday, the central bank said following its financial stability committee meeting that it had observed mild signs of a slowdown in credit between January and March, both in the banking system and capital markets.

Still, it noted that credit growth remains historically high, reflecting economic resilience despite tighter financial conditions.

In April, the default rate on non-earmarked loans to businesses and consumers rose to 4.8% from 4.5% in March, while the average spread in the segment jumped to 31.3 percentage points from 29.4 points the month before.

($1 = 5.6870 reais)