2020.09.0111:10:00UTC+00UK Mortgage Approvals At 5-Month High

UK mortgage approvals rose to a five-month high in July but remained weak in comparison to pre-Covid period, data from the Bank of England showed Tuesday.

The number of mortgage approvals rose to 66,281 in July from 39,902 in June. This was the highest since last February. This was also above economists' forecast of 54,840. Nonetheless, approvals were 10 percent below the February level of 73,700.

Households borrowed an additional GBP 2.7 billion secured on their homes, up from GBP 2.4 billion in June. The expected increase was GBP 2.8 billion.

Following four months of net repayments, consumer credit increased by GBP 1.2 billion in July. On a yearly basis, consumer credit fell 3.6 percent versus a 3.7 percent drop in June.

July's money and credit data confirmed the resurgence in the housing market while recovering consumer credit suggests that households' appetite for big ticket purchases is returning, Andrew Wishart at Capital Economics, said.

Data showed that corporates repaid GBP 3.0 billion of loans in July. Net borrowing by small and medium sized businesses was more than offset by net repayments by large businesses.

The monetary aggregate M4 grew 0.9 percent on month, taking the annual growth to 13.5 percent in July.