--BBA: UK March bank lending to individuals up 913 million stlg
--BBA: UK March mortgage lending up 2.154 billion stlg
--BBA: UK March consumer credit rises 259 million sterling
--BBA: UK March underlying credit card borrowing up 95 mln stlg

By Mike Berg
London, April 23 (BridgeNews) - Total seasonally adjusted lending by major U.K. banks rose by an underlying 4.816 billion sterling in March, according to monthly data released by the British Bankers' Association (BBA) Monday. This was well below February's increase of a revised 7.530 billion sterling and the recent underlying monthly average of 6.120 billion sterling, the BBA said.
* * * The BBA said demand from individuals and industry was stable in March. The weaker total lending by major banks in March was due to reduced borrowing by the financial sector.
Tim Sweeney, the BBA's director general, said "mortgage lending was again subject to a securitization, as a bank freed up capital, but underlying growth remained similar to the buoyant rises seen in the last couple of months."
After allowing for a 1.5-billion-sterling securitization of mortgages by one bank, mortgage lending was up 2.154 billion sterling, compared with 1.980 billion sterling in February. The mortgage lending data is also above the underlying monthly average of 1.840 billion sterling.
U.K. lending to individuals and individual trusts was up 913 million terling in March, compared with 1.755 billion in February. Underlying lending to individuals for March was only 259 million sterling, theweakest number since last September and well below the recent trend increase of 650 million sterling. The sale of a credit card book by one bank was partially responsible for the recorded level of individual lending, according to the BBA monthly report. Underlying credit card lending was up only 95 million, remaining below the recent trend.
Lending to the agricultural sector was 47 million sterling stronger than the recent trend and above last March's level.
Tim Sweeney said "the foot-and-mouth epidemic and lenders' willingness to help those affected probably accounted for increased lending to the farming sector."
Private sector deposits recovered from the previous month's fall, to rise substantially, by 4.882 billion sterling in March. Both retail and wholesale deposits were strong, with personal deposits up an impressive 2.461 billion sterling. Part of the significant increase is due to annual crediting of interest to accounts.
BBA's Sweeney said that the combination of buoyant mortgage lending over recent months and the strong level of personal deposits, "it appears that individuals' finances are in good shape."