One third of state's strategic bank loans went to agriculture
The agriculture sector accounted for nearly a third of all loans from the State-backed Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland in its first four months.
In total more than 1,600 small and medium-sized businesses have availed of the loans, with the majority of funding used for investment purposes.
Nearly €45 million has been drawn from the SBCI, which was set up to offer loans to companies at up to 2% cheaper than current market rates.
Minister for Finance Michael Noonan welcomed the figures, saying the SBCI had made substantial headway in deploying funds.
