April 2022 Bank Lending Survey in Spain

Abstract

According to the Bank Lending Survey, during 2022 Q1 credit standards in business lending tightened both in Spain and in the euro area as a whole, against a backdrop of greater concern for the risks associated with the impact of the energy crisis and, more recently, the war in Ukraine. There were no significant changes in credit standards in Spain in the two household lending segments. Loan applications continued to increase moderately in both areas, across almost all segments. For Q2, supply is expected to contract, more intensely in business lending, both in Spain and in the euro area, in a setting of greater uncertainty associated with the effects of the war in Ukraine. Lastly, as regards the non-standard monetary policy measures of the European Central Bank (ECB), banks expect the favourable effects on their financial position and lending policy to diminish over the coming months, reversing their sign in some cases, against a background of gradual monetary policy normalisation.