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No changes to Central Bank's key loan control mechanism

The Central Bank's countercyclical capital buffer rate will remain at 0% for the third quarter of 2017
The Central Bank's countercyclical capital buffer rate will remain at 0% for the third quarter of 2017

The Central Bank has left a key control mechanism for bank lending unchanged, amid a generally subdued  picture for bank lending.

The Central Bank has left the countercyclical capital buffer (CCyB) rate at 0% for the third quarter of 2017. 

The rate will be effective from July 1, 2017.

The Central Bank noted that aggregate credit conditions remain subdued.

But it added that it was seeing some pockets of positive credit growth in consumer credit, home mortgages, fixed-rate mortgage lending and credit to large enterprises.

"Credit growth to both the household and non-financial corporate sector remains negative and notwithstanding the limitations of credit-gap indicators, these too are indicative of muted credit conditions," the Central Bank said in a statement.

The bank said that the property market is the area most suggestive of potential cyclical systemic risks at this time. 

Residential property prices in particular have been increasing relatively strongly, it noted.

Meanwhile, the Bank of England's Financial Policy Committee today raised its counter-cyclical capital buffer (CCyB) to 0.5% from zero with a one-year implementation phase. 

It said that it expected to raise it further to 1% in November. 

1% is the level that reflects an economy that is running normally.