UK mortgage approvals hit 12-month high in January: BBA

[LONDON] British banks approved the highest number of mortgages in a year last month and credit card lending partly revived after a lull in December, industry figures showed on Friday, contrasting with earlier signs of a loss of economic momentum.

The British Bankers' Association said its members gave the green light to 44,657 mortgages in January, up from 43,581 in December and the highest number since January last year, when 45,794 were granted.

The BBA said low mortgage rates were also driving strong interest from existing home-owners in remortgaging.

Net credit card lending also picked up after stagnating in December, rising by £116 million (S$204.446 million), though this was still one of the smallest increases of the past six months.

REUTERS