–Corp Credit Availability Seen Continuing To Increase Next 3 Months
–BOE: Secured Household Credit Availability Broadly Unchanged Q1
–BOE: Unsecured H’hold Credit Availability Seen Stabilising
–BOE: Unsecured Hhold Credit Availability Seen Increasing Next 3 Mos
–BOE: Secured Household Lending Demand Seen Falling Due Temp Factors
–BOE: Default Rates On Secured H’hold Lending Seen Down in Q1
–BOE: Q1 Corporate Credit Available Net 21.9% Vs 16.3% In Q4
–BOE: Q1 Secured Household Credit Available 1.3% Vs 15.8% Q4
–BOE: Secured H’hold Credit Seen 3.2% Next 3 Months Vs Previous 9.9%
–BOE: Q1 Unsecured H’hold Credit Available -1.5% Vs -16.2% Q4

London (MNI) – Corporate credit conditions continued to improve
through the 3 months to mid-March, the Bank of England’s latest credit
conditions survey has found.

The BOE survey said that corporate credit availability was
expected to increase further in the next 3 months also.

Overall, the survey presents a mixed picture on credit availability
across the whole economy, with the availability of secured credit to
households being ‘broadly unchanged’ in the latest three months and the
level of credit availability in this sector not expected to change
significantly over the next three months.

Unsecured lending to households seems to have stabilised, according
to the survey over the past three months, but lenders expected
availability to increase over the coming 3 months.

The BOE reported that demand for secured lending – both for
mortgages and for remortgaging – had fallen over the past 3 months,
although due to temporary factors, but the BOE said that this was
expected to increase over the next 3 months as these temporary factors
waned.

The latter explanation for the weakness in secured lending
syncs with reports that the housing market has been weak through the
early part of 2010 due to the phasing out of stamp duty relief as well
the harsh weather conditions.

Lenders reported a fall in the demand for unsecured credit,
especially credit card borrowing. Lenders said that they expected demand
to increase in Q2.

Default rates on secured lending to households fell over the past
3 months, the BOE said, and losses given default also fell – by more
than lenders had expected. Default rates and losses on secured household
lending were expected to be broadly unchanged over the next 3 months.

Default rates on lending to private non-financial companies fell
over the past 3 months and losses – given those default rates – were
stable over the period.

–London newsroom: tel+44 207 634 1624; email:
ukeditorial@marketnews.com

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