Turning to the monetary analysis, this confirms the prevailing upside risks to price stability at medium to longer horizons. Annual M3 growth was unchanged at 9.8% in January, remaining at the highest rate observed since the introduction of the euro. At 10.6%, the annual growth rate of loans to the private sector also remained strong in January.
This reflects the continuation of the upward trend in the growth of borrowing by non-financial corporations seen since mid-2004. Meanwhile, the growth of household borrowing has shown some further signs of moderation in recent months, albeit remaining at still high rates.