U.K. Mortgage Approvals Decline to Eight-Month Low, BOE Says
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U.K. mortgage approvals fell more than economists forecast in February to the lowest in eight months as economic uncertainty hurt demand for property and banks tightened lending conditions.
Lenders granted 48,986 loans to buy homes, compared with a revised 57,899 the previous month, the Bank of England said today in London. Economists forecast a decline to 57,200 from an initially reported 58,728, based on the median forecast of 21 economists in Bloomberg survey. A separate report from the central bank said lenders expect mortgage availability to decline “slightly” in the second quarter.