New figures from the Central Bank show that loans given out to Irish households fell by 2.5% year on year in October.
Mortgage loans - which accounted for 83% of the total of household loans - fell at an annual rate of 2.4%, the Central Bank said. This compared to a jump of 31.1% in October 2004.
Loans for other purposes declined by 3% year on year, the bank added.
Today's figures from the Central Bank also reveal that Irish household loan repayments exceeded draw-downs by €253m last month. This followed an increase of €78m in September - the first increase in that category since December 2014.
Meanwhile, household deposits increased by €1.1 billion in October - marking the biggest monthly increase in this category since December 2008. Over the 12 months to October, household deposits rose by 2.6% or €2.4 billion.
Commenting on today's figures, Merrion economist Alan McQuaid said that for the time being the Irish economy continues to prosper despite the weak credit figures.
But Mr McQuaid said that from a long-term perspective, a greater level of credit will need to flow into the economy to maintain the positive GDP growth momentum seen over the last year or so.
"However, the fact is that many Irish consumers/households are still burdened with a high level of outstanding debt from the "Celtic Tiger" era and are in no hurry to add to that load," the economist stated.
