AMP has opted for some price discounting in an effort to generate demand for loans from its banking subsidiary.AMP over the weekend announced a cut of 22 basis points in its basic variable home loan to 6.27 per cent. AMP cut its introductory variable rate loan by 45 basis points to 5.94 per cent.This latter loan rate is only 20 basis points more than the 5.75 per cent paid by AMP on its highest yielding savings account.The home loan book of AMP Bank declined in January 2010 over December 2009, by 0.2 per cent, and highlights a disappointing year for the lender's home loan business.AMP reported very strong growth rates in 2008 (around double that of the wider market) but let the momentum slip over the following year, when it recorded growth in home loans of only two per cent (on APRA data) and compared with a growth rate for all banks of more than 12 per cent.AMP has little access to retail funding, with household deposits of only $1.3 billion compared with a mortgage book at January 2010 of $8.3 billion.AMP is one of several small funders to enjoy repeat levels of support from the Australian Office of Financial Management in marketing mortgage-backed securities, including a $1 billion transaction two months ago.