According to a study from UHY International, a global network of independent accounting and consulting firms, the U.S. has increased bank lending by 9% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study also found that the U.S. is outpacing the eight major European Union economies, which increased lending by an average of 5.3%. The country with the most dramatic increase in lending has been Brazil, which has increased its lending 18% in the past year.

The UHY study examined 24 major economies and showed that the U.S. increased overall lending to businesses by $398 billion in the last 12 months. The also report found that banks in the U.S. have increased lending to businesses at a higher rate during the pandemic compared with the economy of Canada (-0.3%).

“The U.S. moved quickly to roll out large-scale lending packages once the pandemic took hold in March 2020. These have served as a lifeline for many businesses,” Dennis Petri, managing director at UHY Advisors and chairman of the board of directors of UHY International, said.

Outstanding lending to businesses across the 10 biggest global economies hit a total of $32.7 trillion last year, an increase of $3.1 trillion (10.5%) compared with $29.6 trillion of outstanding loans a year earlier, according to UHY.