European Central Bank (ECB) Households Loans y/y

ECB Households loans y/y reflects changes in quantities of loans to European households for the reporting period, compared to the same period a year ago. The indicator is published by the European Central Bank twice a year. Each covers loans for the previous two quarters.

Household loans include loans for house purchases and consumer credit. In addition, this also includes lending to private entrepreneurs, which are not reflected in Non-Financial Corporations loans. The EU Households Loan index is compiled based on data collected separately by country. The underlying data include current outstanding loans, to which no harmonization across European countries is applied.

The indicator is calculated based on the data reported by euro area monetary financial institutions to the ECB and the Bank Lending Survey conducted by the ECB since 2003. It offers an otherwise incomprehensible insight into the supply and demand of bank loans from companies and households. In addition to the actual volume of lending, the survey covers credit terms, standards for approving loans and the share of rejections. The obtained data is used in various decision-making processes on monetary policy measures, especially in times of financial crises.

Loans data serves as an important indicator of household sustainability on the one hand and reflect monetary policies on the other hand. An increase in this value or a value above expectations may stimulate the economy and the EUR. Accordingly, lower than expected values are seen as negative for the European currency.