According to a Treasury Department's report on the 500 financial institutions that received funding under the Capital Purchase Program, the amount of loans outstanding fell 0.8% in March to $5.24 trillion from $5.28 trillion in February. Consumer loans outstanding, including residential mortgages, declined 0.5% in March to $2.88 trillion while commercial loans outstanding fell 1.2% to $2.35 trillion. The government, through the Treasury Department's Capital Purchase Program, has invested about $200 billion in more than 500 financial institutions, in order to inject liquidity into the system. Some analysts believe that banks will be doing a disservice to the economy if they do not use tax payers' money to extend credit. Banks have maintained, however, that while they are open to lending, the demand for loans has fallen. Companies have cut-back on expansion plans and individuals are going easy on mortgages and personal expenditures. Unless the economy picks up, appetite for loans may not see any improvement in the near-future.