BIS central bankers’ speeches  11  Table 1. Test of Granger causality between lending for house purchase and housing prices in selected EU countries (1) (2003Q2-2013Q3, annual growth rates)  Country Belgium France Italy Netherlands Spain UK Germany  F-Statistic 5.071 4.928 4.638 2.866 4.030 4.583  Prob.
•  Fourth, the empirical evidence from many countries and various periods, including the recent experience, has shown that excessive credit expansion and high leverage can be key drivers of unsustainable asset price developments, through various channels, including their effects on funding liquidity risk, risk premia and market liquidity.