The ECB’s series of interest rate hikes and the sluggish economy are dampening bank lending to companies in the eurozone. According to the European Central Bank (ECB) on Tuesday, lending by financial institutions to companies in November was only at the previous year’s level. In October, lending had even shrunk by 0.3 percent over the year. In contrast, banks granted 0.5 percent more loans to private households in November than a year ago. Growth of 0.6 percent had been reported for October.