2021.07.2909:49:00UTC+00UK Mortgage Borrowing Reaches Record High

The UK mortgage borrowing hit a record level in June, ahead of the lower stamp duty rates began to taper off from July, data from the Bank of England showed on Thursday.

Net mortgage borrowing reached a record GBP 17.9 billion in June. Evidence suggests there has been a shortening of time between a mortgage being approved and the lending itself, the BoE said.

The number of mortgage approvals declined to 81,338 in June from 86,949 in May. This was the lowest since July 2020 and well below economists' forecast of 86,100.

Consumer credit rose GBP 0.3 billion in June, following significant net repayments between March 2020 and February 2021, averaging GBP 1.9 billion.

The money and credit data showed that consumers were willing to take on more debt in June, however there were signs that the resurgence in virus cases may have triggered some consumer caution, which might weigh on the recovery, Kieran Tompkins, an economist at Capital Economics, said.

Large businesses borrowed GBP 0.8 billion from banks in June, the highest since November 2020. Meanwhile, small and medium sized businesses repaid GBP 0.3 billion. The broad measure of money supply, M4 grew 0.5 percent on month in June, taking the annual growth to 6.9 percent.