Rise in UK mortgage approvals

The number of approvals for new house purchases in Britain has defied expectations by rising to its highest point in almost two years.

However economists warned of deals becoming more restricted as banks tighten lending conditions.

Loan approvals for house purchase rose to 52,854 in November with a total value of £7.6bn (€91.bn), the second monthly rise in a row and the highest figure since December 2009, the Bank of England figures showed.

Samuel Tombs of Capital Economics said the increase from 52,786 a month earlier defied the widely-held expectation for a fall.

But he added: “We fear that approvals for new house purchase might soon start to fall as banks further restrict the availability, and raise the price, of credit in response to the deterioration in wholesale funding markets.”