Popular sees bad loans at 2-2.5 pct by year end

MADRID, July 24 (Reuters) - Spanish bank Banco Popular (POP.MC: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Thursday it expects its non-performing loans to be 2-2.5 percent of the total by end of this year.

Earlier, Spain's third-largest bank, which is heavily exposed to the struggling property sector, said its NPL rate was 1.42 percent at the end of June, up from 0.72 percent a year ago. (Reporting by Judith MacInnes, writing by Sarah Morris)