The annual growth rate of loans to households (adjusted for loan sales and securitisation) remained stable at 1.4% in January 2016. Overall, the monetary policy measures in place since June 2014 have clearly improved borrowing conditions for firms and households, as well as credit flows across the euro area.
For example, annual growth rates of private sector credit remained well above 40 per cent in Bulgaria, Romania, Latvia, and Lithuania in the run-up to the crisis. Second, foreign banks spread the crisis symptoms through a reduction in cross-border lending; by deleveraging from the region once the crisis started.