Spain’s small and medium-sized businesses have been hit significantly harder by the global financial crisis than similar companies in other large continental European countries, according to a European Central Bank survey that also suggests the weak economic outlook – not bank restrictions – is curbing bank lending.

Spain was the worst performer among the largest eurozone countries in a new survey launched by the ECB in Frankfurt. It showed some 20.1 per cent of small and medium-sized companies in Spain reporting that applications for bank loans had been rejected – compared with 12 per cent for the eurozone as a whole. Some 58 per cent said the availability of bank loans had deteriorated in the past six months, compared with 43 per cent for the eurozone.