New figures from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand show lending by trading banks rose slightly in August, but the amount on loan is still down from the same time a year ago.
Lending by banks to farms, households and firms increased marginally during August.
However, lending is still below the level it was a year ago and lending to firms is well down.
The Reserve Bank says lending to firms is 6.6% lower than August 2009.
Lending to households is up 2.2%, although lending growth is tapering off.
Earlier this year, household credit was growing at an annual rate of nearly 3%.
The growth in lending to farming is also slowing. It was 1.9% higher in August compared with the same time a year ago, compared with annual growth of more than 7% at the start of this year.
