Lending in Ireland fell for a second consecutive month in July after banks and other financial institutions wrote down the value of loans, the country's central bank said Monday.
Private-sector credit declined 2.2% in July from a year earlier; lending fell 0.7% in June.
"The effect of increased writedowns and provisions against bad and doubtful debts, reflecting weaknesses in the broader economy, have led to the" decline, the central bank said.
Ireland's banks face loan losses of about $50 billion after the bursting of the country's property bubble, the International Monetary Fund said in June. Demand for loans from businesses and consumers declined as the economy shrank and they scaled back their spending.
