Business Demand For Bank Loans Was Weaker In The First Quarter, Fed Survey Finds

Demand for bank loans from commercial and industrial firms was weaker in the first quarter, the Federal Reserve said Monday in its senior loan officer survey. That came in a quarter when standards for loans were basically unchanged. The officers said that they continued to tighten standards for commercial real estate, a process that economists said started in late 2015. Many officers cited regulatory reasons for tightening commercial real estate standards. There was also weaker demand for auto loans and credit cards. The survey found a moderate tightening of standards for auto loans for the second straight quarter. But bank officers reported that they eased standards for credit-card loans.