There are fewer and fewer of them loans that Italian families and businesses are asking for from financial institutions. The lack of a drop in interest rates in the summer months has further slowed down the tendency to request liquidity, which was already very low. The general data speaks of a 1.6% decline across the board. Families fared slightly better, increasing their applications by 0.4 percentage points compared to the previous month, although they remained in the negative field of 0.6% over 2023.
On the other hand, the situation of companies is very negative, as they are asking for less money to borrow both compared to 2023 and compared to the last survey, that of July. The growth of private deposits is also slowing down while bond collections are growing. Mortgage interest rates fall below 4%but the monthly variation is minimal.
Families and businesses are asking for fewer and fewer loans
The Bank of Italy has released the data regarding the loans of July 2024, compared to the same period in 2023. Overall, banks have lent less money than a year ago, with a 1.6% drop in the overall figure. A discouraging sign despite the fact that the interest rates set by the European Central Bank are still higher than a year ago, albeit only by 0.25%.
The most encouraging data is that of familieswhich stabilized just below last year’s levels. In fact, in 2023, the data on loans to households is lower by 0.6%, with an improvement compared to the previous month. In June, in fact, this data stood at -1%. Therefore, the demand for loans by private individuals holds up, waiting for a further cut in the cost of money.
The situation for companies is much more difficult.. Italian companies requested almost 4% fewer loans than a year ago, significantly worsening the June figure (3.9% versus 3.4%). A decline in loans requested by non-financial companies often indicates a lack of willingness to make investments. Even in this case, however, at least part of the blame could be on the cost of money.
Mortgage rates still high: deposit growth also falls
The rates inclusive of expenses and excise duties (Taeg) of the mortgages to buy a house. Although it remains high, this figure drops below the 4% threshold, stabilising at 3.94% versus 4.0% in June. As for consumer credit, however, rates increased compared to the previous month, confirming expenses and excise duties above 10%, at 10.51%, up 0.2 percentage points.
The increase in the number of workers also slowed down in July deposits private individuals recorded in June. In the seventh month of the year, this figure increased by 1.1%, compared to 2.9% in the previous 30 days. Passive rates on the total deposits themselves remained basically stable, remaining above 1% (1.01%) although decreasing compared to 1.03% in June. Finally, the significant increase in investment in bonds on the annual data, although its monthly growth slowed down. The data in fact recorded a +13.3% in July, while in June it had reached +14.8%.
