New figures from the Central Bank today show that the rate of mortgage lending slowed again in February.
The amount of money lent for new mortgages last month rose by just €58m after a much stronger rise of €350m in January.
The Central Bank said the annual rate of increase in residential mortgages fell to 4.9% in February from 5.4% in January. The fall came despite lower interest rates and a 2.1% fall in house prices in the first two months of 2009.
However, the Central Bank noted the same trend in the rest of the euro zone countries.
Overall, private sector lending fell by €95m last month, compared with a €3.3 billion rise in January. The annual rate of growth fell from 6% to 4.8%.
Today's figures also reveal that the annual rate of credit card debt fell to 3.3% in Febuary. This compares to a figure of 8.2% the same time last year.
The Central Bank says that outstanding debts on credit cards has generally been declining since last October - with the exception of the month of December - as consumer spending slows.
