Big banks still not lending
Loan volume at the 21 largest recipients of government funding fell 7% during the month of April, according to a survey by the Treasury Department.
Lending at the nation’s top banks slowed in April, according to a government report published Monday, driven in part by continued deterioration in the U.S. economy.
The dollar amount of new loans issued by the 21 biggest recipients of taxpayer funds under the government’s Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, fell 7% to $273 billion from nearly $295 billion during the month of March.
Regulators attributed part of the decline to lower demand for new commercial and industrial loans, which fell nearly 29% during the month as U.S. businesses broadly avoided acquisitions, building plants and buying inventory.
Weakness was also notable across a wide variety of consumer loan categories, including first mortgages and credit cards. Of the 21 banks that took part in the survey, 15 reported a decline in loan originations, according to the Treasury Department.
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