European businesses will suffer a sharp contraction in credit next year as the full consequences of the global crisis unfold for non-financial companies, the International Monetary Fund predicted on Tuesday.

“In the US we already see a lack of access to credit for companies. In Europe there is a bit of a longer delay in the credit cycle. But there will be a very sharp slowdown in credit growth next year,” Alessandro Leipold, acting director of the IMF’s European department, told the Financial Times in an interview.