ECB, lending rates reached their highest level in over ten years in April – Corriere.it

The tightening of monetary policy continues to be reflected in interest rates and financing conditions, epFor banks and households, the cost of credit increases: “In April, interest rates on loans reached their highest level for over ten years, reaching 4.4% for business loans and 3.4% for mortgage loans”: writes the ECB in its economic bulletin. «The euro area economy has stagnated in recent months» and «it is probable that economic growth will remain weak in the short term, but will strengthen over the course of the year as inflation decreases and the critical issues on the supply side.

Analysts underline that “the tightening of monetary policy will increasingly be transmitted to the real economy and, together with the gradual withdrawal of public finance support measures, will have a negative impact on the growth of the economy in the medium term”. underlines the ECB, which at its June meeting cut its growth estimates to 0.9% in 2023 and 1.5% in 2024. Going into detail, “the different sectors of the economy present uneven conditions: the manufacturing sector continues to weaken, also due to lower global demand and more restrictive financing conditions in the euro area, while services continue to show sealing. The labor market remains a strong point for the economy»