HELSINKI: The European Central Bank handed 73.8 billion euros ($84.2 billion) to euro-area banks in the fourth round of a program designed to boost their lending to the real economy.
The take-up compares with a median estimate of 75 billion euros by analysts in a Bloomberg survey, with predictions ranging from 20 billion euros to 160 billion euros. Banks borrowed 98 billion euros in a similar operation in March, and have now taken 384 billion euros in total.
The Targeted Longer-Term Refinancing Operations were announced a year ago by ECB President Mario Draghi as part of a package to boost the economy and revive inflation. While they had little initial impact and are now being overshadowed by quantitative easing, the TLTROs still provide a signal of banks’ readiness to back the regional upswing with new loans.
“The healthy uptake at the ECB’s latest TLTRO adds to positive signs for the banking sector, but we doubt it will presage a sharp rise in lending,” said Jennifer McKeown, an economist at Capital Economics Ltd. in London.
