LONDON (MNI) – European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet
has again called on banks to increase their lending, pointing to the
help which the ECB had provided to the banking sector.

“We have a strong message to commercial banks; that they have to do
their job, to finance the real ecnomomy.. .to take appropriate measures
to do their job…(the ECB) took measures that were forthcoming,
traditional and non-conventional measures – it was not for the sake of
pleasing the banks, it was for the sake of financing the economy”.

In other comments, Trichet also noted that it has been the trend
for loans to the household sector to pick up ahead of lending to the
commercial sector, especially following a recession:

“We have always observed after a recession, after such a period,
you normally are observing that loans to households are going up before
loans to non-financial corporations.

–London newsroom: 0044-207-634-1624: email: ukeditorial@marketnews.com

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