If you believe that small businesses are the heart and soul of the U.S. economy, well, I don't exactly know what to tell you.

The Small Business Administration, which ended its fiscal year on Wednesday, reported that it approved fewer than 45,000 loans in 2009, down 36 percent from last year, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. The dollar amount of those loans fell by almost 27 percent, to $9.3 billion over that time.

However, the year ended on a high note, with the dollar volume of approved loans in September reaching the highest level since August 2007 during the month. In the fourth quarter as a whole, more than 15,000 loans totaling $3.3 billion were approved, an 18 percent increase from a year earlier and almost back to quarterly levels seen in 2007.

The biggest problem is that credit standards have tightened drastically for small businesses. The Federal Reserve's survey of senior loan officers in July showed that standards on loans to small firms tightened at roughly 35 percent of respondents. That follows 40 percent that reported tightening standards in April and 70 percent in January.

Things could be getting better, though.

A survey of banks by The Banker magazine and the International Federation of Accountants released on Thursday found that over 20 percent of the more than 350 respondents indicated that they would raise the number of new loans and increase loan amounts to existing small and medium sized clients over the next two years. Just 2 percent said they would restrict loans to such businesses.

Banks are getting tough on small businesses for good reason.

Delinquencies among small and medium-sized U.S. businesses on the loans, leases and lines of credit they use to finance investment in capital equipment rose in August, data from PayNet showed, Reuters reported on Thursday.

Accounts in moderate delinquency, or those behind by 30 days or more, rose to 4.40 percent in August from 4.36 percent in July, said PayNet, a risk management provider to the commercial credit industry.

Accounts 90 days or more behind in payment improved slightly, slipping to 1.51 percent in August from 1.52 percent in July. But those considered to be in default -- those that were 180 days behind -- rose to 0.81 percent in August from 0.78 percent in July.