UK housing market stalls, credit card borrowing rises

BRITAIN’S housing market slowed dramatically in November and people ramped up borrowing on credit cards, Bank of England data released on Wednesday (Jan 4) showed. 

The information underscored the effects of rising interest rates and the cost-of-living crisis.

British lenders approved 46,075 mortgages in November, down from 57,875 in October and marking the lowest level since June 2020, when the housing market slowed to a crawl due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Economists polled by Reuters had estimated 55,000 mortgage approvals for November.

Consumer credit rose in net terms by £1.5 billion (S$2.4 billion), driven by a £1.2 billion jump in credit card borrowing, the largest such increase since March 2004. REUTERS