UK mortgage lending stalls for first time since pandemic in 2021

UK MORTGAGE lending ground to a halt in March for the first time since the pandemic was raging in mid-2021, but approvals for new loans picked up.

The figures from the Bank of England on Thursday (May 4) suggest that activity in the housing market might be improving after a slump last year.

Net lending for residential property purchases was unchanged in March after a £700 million (S$1.16 billion) increase the month before, well below the £1.6 billion in new loans economists had expected. However, the more forward-looking mortgage approvals figure showed a jump to 52,000 in March from 44,100 the previous month. That was well above the 46,000 expected.

Consumer borrowing also grew strongly in the latest month, rising £1.6 billion in March, more than economists had expected. Those figures cover car loans, credit cards and personal lines of credit. BLOOMBERG