Growth in loans to the property sector fell for the fourth consecutive quarter in the three months to the end of June, posting the lowest annual increase for more than two years, according to the latest figures from the Central Bank.

The private-sector credit numbers show that growth in loans to the construction sector also maintained a downward trend, falling for the third quarter in a row. Despite that, growth in lending to both sectors remained high on an annual basis, with construction loans up by 35.6 per cent and real estate loans up by 44.3 per cent.

Property-related lending, including residential mortgages, accounted for almost three-quarters of the total €53.5 billion increase in private-sector credit in the year to June. The same kinds of loans represented 62.4 per cent of the total stock of credit, a record level and up from 60.1 per cent a year earlier.

Loans to the "real estate activities" subsector accounted for one-fifth of all outstanding lending as June closed.

The figures confirm the Republic's position as the most indebted member of the euro zone when measured according to gross national product.

Irish borrowers are also more likely than most to secure their loans on property, with four-fifths of personal credit tied to bricks and mortar compared to a euro-zone average of two-thirds.

Loans to individuals, which account for slightly more than two-fifths of outstanding private-sector credit, increased by 11 per cent in the year to the end of June.

This was the lowest annual growth rate since 1994, but the numbers were skewed by a reclassification in the overall numbers and a substantial increase in securitisations during the year.

When these securitisations are included, personal-sector credit was up by 17.8 per cent during the year, while residential mortgage lending grew by 19 per cent.

Within outstanding mortgages, slightly more than one-quarter were buy-to-let loans. This figure was steady in the first two quarters. A further breakdown of the numbers pointed to optimism among manufacturing companies, with the annual rate of increase in lending to the sector up from 11 per cent last year to almost 30 per cent in the second quarter. Loans to manufacturing companies comprise just 2.4 per cent of outstanding private-sector loan stock.

The only sector to surpass the annual growth rates in construction and real estate was "health and social work", where loans rose by 69.4 per cent year-on-year. However, this sector only accounts for 0.7 per cent of all private-sector loans.