Lenders may feel the property pinch

Higher exposure to sector increases risks for banks, says new S&P report

Persistent weakness in the real estate market will dent prospects for Chinese lenders due to their large exposure to the sector, global credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's Rating Services said on Tuesday.

Loans to property development and construction copanies from all sources amounted to 8.2 trillion yuan ($1.3 trillion), or 13.8 percent of the total loans, at the end of last year, the ratings agency said in a report. That compared with 7 trillion yuan, or 11.9 percent of the total loans made by commercial banks by the end of 2013.