10-year high for UK lending growth

British lending to consumers expanded at the fastest annual rate in almost a decade in November and banks approved more mortgages than forecast, showing a buoyant mood among households towards the end of 2015.

The Bank of England said net lending to consumers in November was up 8.3% compared with a year earlier, the biggest such increase since February 2006 and a growth rate that may raise concern at the bank about lending standards.

In cash terms, lending was up £1.476bn (€1.358bn) compared with the previous month, beating economists’ forecasts in a Reuters poll .