Bank Loan Squeeze May Be Easing: A...

Bank Loan Squeeze May Be Easing: A credit crunch caused by banks’ fear of taking on bad loans was showing signs of easing by mid-March, a survey published by the Federal Reserve System suggests. It said that if the banks were still not eagerly pushing loans, at least fewer of them were stiffening conditions that borrowers must meet to qualify for one. The latest survey cautioned that interpretation of its findings was “clouded” because of the short time since the previous one was taken Feb. 8. A total of 56 domestic banks and an undisclosed number of foreign banks were covered by the report.