Mortgage lending falls in January

The increase in total net lending to individuals in January (£1.1 billion) was lower than the December increase and the previous six-month average, according to the Bank of England (BoE).

The twelve-month growth rate continued to fall, by 0.5 percentage points to 3.1%, and the three-month annualised growth rate slowed by 0.1 percentage points to 1.3%.

Within the total, the increase in net lending secured on dwellings (£0.7 billion) was lower than the December increase and the previous six-month average. The twelve-month growth rate continued to fall, by 0.6 percentage points to 2.8%. The three-month annualised growth rate was unchanged at 1.1%. The numbers of loans approved for house(31,000) and for other purposes (33,000) were in line with December figures. The number of loans purchase approved for remortgaging (34,000) was lower than in December.

The increase in net consumer credit in January (£0.4 billion) was above the increase in December but below the previous six-month average. Net credit card lending increased by £0.3 billion and net other loans and advances rose by £0.1 billion. The annual growth rate of consumer credit continued to slow, to 4.6%; the three-month annualised growth rate fell by 0.4 percentage points, to 2.4%.