【BEC高級】債務(wù)文化(2/3)

All this is possible because credit is easy and interest rates are low. Banks are encouraged to lend, and often do so irresponsibly. In some states it's possible to get a 100% mortgage, in other words with no down-payment, equivalent to four times a couple's combined annual salary. The market is constantly coming up with new financial products and new ways of extending credit to ordinary people. General Motors, whose automotive business is in decline, now sells home equity loans through a subsidiary. It’s the only part of company that has been consistently profitable in recent years. The reason for this boom in money lending is clear, to fund consumer spending. As long as people are spending, economic growth continues. In other more conservative borrowing cultures, like Germany, economic growth has slowed because in times of uncertainty people tend to save their money, rather than borrowing and spending to make themselves feel better.