Most European Union banks reduced their ratio of non-performing loans (NPLs) to total exposures over the year to end-June, data from the EU-wide transparency exercise shows, with those domiciled in countries hardest hit by the eurozone crisis improving the most.

In aggregate, the EU-wide NPL ratio shrunk to 3% at end-June, down from 3.6% a year earlier.

Cypriot banks disclosed the biggest cut to their aggregate NPL ratio, which fell by almost 13 percentage points to 21.5% over the period.