Three separate reports out today point to record mortgage lending in the UK last month. The British Bankers' Association said that lending secured on dwellings rose by an underlying STG6.1bn in October, the biggest increase ever. After cutting interest rates to a 48-year low of 3.5pc in the summer, the Bank of England raised borrowing costs earlier this month in a bid to cool the rapid rise in debt levels which it feared was increasing the risk of a crash in the housing market.
In a separate report out today, the UK Building Societies' Association also pointed to continuing strength in the housing market. The lender's association said that net advances were STG2.5bn in October, up from STG859m a year earlier. Loan approvals rose to STG5.1bn from STG4.0bn in October 2002. A third report from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) showed that total gross mortgage lending rose 8.3pc in October to STG27.5bn. That was 31pc higher than October 2002 and CML said lending for house purchase accounted for 47pc of total lending. //www.fxcentre.com