October 29, 2009

IRISH BANKS tightened their criteria for lending to mortgage customers and businesses in the third quarter of 2009, while demand for loans also fell, according to the results of the latest European Central Bank (ECB) survey.This was the ninth quarter in a row in which credit standards on loans to businesses had tightened, the Euro Area Bank Lending Survey found.

The stricter lending standards at Irish banks mirrored a tightening in credit criteria across Europe.Irish banks expect credit standards to remain unchanged during the fourth quarter of 2009. This was in contrast to the euro zone as a whole, where banks expect to ease credit standards for companies in the fourth quarter.Although Irish borrowers were obliged to meet stricter credit standards on mortgages, there was no change in credit standards for other consumer credit.