LONDON (Reuters) – British lenders approved many more mortgages than expected in December, according to Bank of England data on Tuesday that underlined the recent strength of the housing market.
The BoE said 71,015 mortgages were approved in December, up from 67,859 in November and above all forecasts in a Reuters poll that had pointed to 66,000 approvals.
Consumer credit rose in net terms by 831 million pounds ($1.12 billion) in December, broadly as expected.
($1 = 0.7417 pounds)
(Reporting by Andy Bruce, editing by David Milliken)
