Twice a year, EOS and Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf survey companies in Germany on which financial instruments they are aware of and use.
As early as November 2007, German banks were already showing greater caution about granting loans as a consequence of the US mortgage crisis. This is one of the findings of the current EOS Financial Panel. In this market survey, EOS, in cooperation with Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf, asks around 200 German companies about their financial instruments twice a year.
Two months before January’s sharp drop in share prices on the international stock markets, 61 out of 100 companies, or almost two-thirds, agreed with the statement that the US mortgage crisis had caused German banks to exercise greater caution in granting loans. Only 39 out of 100 companies saw no link. This result is surprising in view of the survey’s timing.