New Central Bank figures this morning show that lending growth edged higher in September.
Private sector lending grew by 24.9% on a year on year basis. This compared with 24.7% in August and is around four time above the euro zone average.
The Central Bank said that, once again, demand for residential mortgages was the main driving force behind the expansion in private sector credit.
Net mortgage lending of €1.6 billion in September was one of the highest monthly increases on record - July 2004 being the only month with a bigger increase - and accounted for almost 60% of the total increase.
Earlier this year, Central Bank Governor John Hurley warned that if these rates continued, Ireland could become one of the most indebted countries in the euro area within a few years.
Today's Central Bank figures also reveal that money invested in SSIA accounts increased by €138m to stand at $4.38 billion by the end of September.
