According to the ECB’s latest Survey on the Access to Finance of Enterprises (SAFE), conducted between 27 August and 3 October 2025, lending conditions for euro area firms tightened marginally in the third quarter of 2025, while financing needs and availability remained broadly unchanged.
A small net 2% of firms reported increases in bank loan interest rates, marking a shift from the previous quarter’s easing. The tightening was mainly felt by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), while larger firms saw a slight decline in borrowing costs. Additionally, a net 23% of firms observed higher financing charges and collateral requirements, reflecting a moderate increase in overall borrowing constraints.
Despite these developments, firms’ financing needs were stable (net 0%), and loan availability remained almost unchanged (net -1%). This resulted in a small financing gap of 1%, suggesting that access to credit has neither improved nor deteriorated significantly.
Firms continued to view the general economic outlook as the main factor limiting external financing (net 19%), though banks’ willingness to lend showed a modest improvement. At the same time, company-specific factors such as sales and profit outlooks weighed more negatively on financing conditions.
Regarding business performance, firms reported flat turnover, lower profits, and a rise in investment (net 8%). Looking ahead, 25% of firms remained optimistic about future developments, though their expectations for investment financing were slightly less positive than before.
Inflation-related expectations were stable overall: firms projected selling prices to rise by 2.9% and wages by 3.0%, while non-labour input costs were seen increasing by 3.8%. Median inflation expectations stood at 2.5% one year ahead and 3.0% for both three- and five-year horizons, with most firms (53%) continuing to see upside risks to long-term inflation.
