Bank Lending Surveys
Treasury launched the monthly bank lending surveys as part of its commitment to Congress and the public to enhance communication and transparency about its programs to stabilize the financial system. The surveys are designed to provide new, more frequent and more accessible information on banks' lending activities to help taxpayers easily assess the lending and other activities of banks receiving government investments.
THE
MONTHLY LENDING AND INTERMEDIATION
SNAPSHOT
Summary Analysis:
January 2010
Economic, financial, and credit market conditions continued to show solid improvement as Treasury’s fourteenth survey of banks’ activities was conducted. Early indicators about activity in the first quarter of 2010 suggest that the economy continued to grow following the 5.9 percent jump in real GDP posted in the fourth quarter of 2009. Real consumer spending rose in January and retail sales excluding motor vehicle sales – which have weakened in recent months – were up solidly in February. Consumer sentiment rose from the lows recorded in late 2008 and early 2009. Housing activity was mixed in January. Housing starts picked up and permits for future construction rose, exceeding starts for a fourth straight month. Home sales slowed, but the expected expiration of the first-time home buyer tax credit (which was recently expanded and extended through April) appears to have boosted sales in the fall and therefore may be responsible for the recent slowdown. Indicators of manufacturing and nonmanufacturing activity suggest both sectors expanded in early 2010. Labor market conditions remained weak, but the pace of job loss slowed further in January and February. The average monthly decline in nonfarm payrolls fell to 31,000 in the first two months of the year from 90,000 in the fourth quarter and 753,000 in the first quarter of 2009. The unemployment rate remained high, though it eased by 0.3 percentage point to 9.7 percent in January and was unchanged at that level in February. Wage and price pressures were limited. Financial and credit markets were generally stable at the start of 2010. Financial market volatility (as measured by the VIX) and some measures of credit market risk returned to pre-crisis levels. Equity markets posted gains in early 2010. Credit flows picked up considerably compared to a year earlier, though demand for bank loans from households and businesses remained weak early in the first quarter. Private forecasters expect real GDP to grow at about a 3 percent annual rate in the first quarter. Read more…
THE CAPITAL PURCHASE PROGRAM MONTHLY LENDING REPORT
Summary Analysis: January
2010
The CPP Monthly Lending Report includes all participants in the CPP and is published in addition to the Monthly Lending and Intermediation Snapshot. The Lending Report makes available three data points on a monthly basis: average outstanding balances of consumer loans, commercial loans, and total loans from all CPP participants. Read more...
