The depressed lending officers

It is not surprising that there is a strong correlation between the availability of credit to the corporate world and the ability of companies to grow their earnings. In the US, the regional banking crisis and the higher rates have let lending officers to tighten their standards before accepting to give out new loans. This will sooner or later lead to lower corporate earnings unless the mood amongst lending officers starts to improve again. At ECP, we are wondering why that would happen in the short run and continue to focus on businesses with strong balance sheets who are less dependant on external financing.