«(...)
[The] increase in the euro's value against the dollar since 2011 had
driven down the price of commodities
such as fuel in euro terms, contributing to low inflation. (…)
[The] central bank might take steps to encourage banks to lend more.
(…) [Mario Draghi also] cited data showing that even
profitable companies in (...) Portugal have trouble getting banks
loans.
(…) [One-third] of Portuguese companies face credit constraints, Mr
Draghi said, compared with only 1 percent in Germany and Austria.
(…) There has been speculation the European
Central Bank might issue cheap loans to euro zone banks,
with
strings attached to ensure they lend the money to businesses
rather than investing bonds, as that happened in the past.
Jack
Ewing (Sintra, Portugal), «E.C.B.seeks a strategy for staving off
deflation», International
New York Times,
Tuesday, May 27, 2014, p.15
