January 2020 Bank lending survey in Spain

According to the Bank Lending Survey, during 2019 Q4, credit standards tightened slightly for all categories of lending in Spain, whereas this only affected consumer credit and other lending to households in the euro area. In this segment, the general terms and conditions on new lending eased, both in Spain and in the euro area as a whole. Furthermore, in Spain, the terms and conditions on loans to households for house purchase tightened slightly. Demand for all types of credit in Spain decreased, whereas in the euro area as a whole loan applications from enterprises declined and those from households increased. According to the responding banks, regulatory and supervisory actions on capital, leverage and liquidity had a negligible impact on credit supply in Spain in the second half of 2019, whereas they prompted a slight tightening in the euro area. The NPL ratio contributed to a tightening of credit standards (in consumer credit in Spain and in the other two segments in the euro area). Lastly, as for the ECB’s TLTRO III (the third series of targeted longer-term refinancing operations), the banks’ participation in the September operation was limited and increased significantly in the December operation, as they were essentially attracted by the favourable conditions of this funding.