U.S. downturn not as bad as first feared, says Mirow

BERLIN (Reuters) - The economic downturn in the United States may not be as steep as feared but the crisis in global financial markets will hit bank earnings, Germany's Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Mirow said on Sunday.

In an advance of an interview to appear in the Tagesspiegel newspaper on Monday, Mirow said the period of decline in U.S. growth could nevertheless last longer than first thought.

The decline in U.S. growth "evidently hasn't been as steep and widespread" as expected, Mirow said. He added it could nevertheless last longer than expected.

"An indication of that are the real estate prices that continue to fall, which are having an impact on consumer behavior," he said.

He added banks face a difficult period due to the global crisis in financial markets.

"We'll see a deep imprint from the financial crisis on the banks' balance sheets in the next quarter as well," Mirow said.

(Writing by Erik Kirschbaum; editing by David Cowell)