Firstly, default in the credit portfolio has been increasing due inter alia to the prolonged economic recession, even though the flow of new defaults has been declining, consistent with the signs of recovery in the real economy. The decline of NPL was accompanied by an increase in impairments and as a consequence the NPL coverage remained relatively stable throughout the period.
Secondly, net interest income has narrowed (from 1.5% in December 2010 to 1.05% in June 2013) due to various causes, of which I would like to stress the following five: •  The low level of short-term interest rates, which reduces spreads on demand deposits.