Mortgage approvals drop less than expected
Mortgage approvals fell a little less than feared during February, but the numbers still remain near their worst in almost a decade.
Figures from the Bank of England showed that 73,000 loans were approved for UK house purchases, down from 74,000 in January, but better than the drop to 72,000 expected.
The central bank's report also revealed that lending secured on properties remained at £7.4bn.
The figures come as house prices continue to weaken and banks cut back on the amount they are prepared to lend. They have so far failed to pass on the BoE's two interest rate cuts since December.
A survey of estate agents released by online property group Hometrack on Monday revealed that average house prices fell for the sixth month in a row in March.
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Meanwhile, yesterday's data from the Land Registry had annual house price inflation down again at 5.3%, although the cost of an average property remained static at £185,616.
Elsewhere in today's release, consumer credit was shown to have risen by the most in over five years in February and more than double economists' forecasts.
Consumer credit was up by £2.35bn following a £0.88bn increase the month before and way ahead of the £0.9bn expected.
The Bank of England is still widely expected to lower interest rates by half a point to 5% next week, although yesterday's rise in manufacturers' prices could put a spanner in the works, say analysts.
