- Mark Carney, Bank of England Governor
The number of UK mortgage approvals dropped 12% to 55,600 in November from the preceding month, while the volume of loans dropped 13% to 9.2 billion pounds, as demand for mortgages cooled at the end of 2014. According to the latest Bank of England credit report, UK consumers demand for secured loans for house purchases declined substantially in the final quarter of 2014, whereas major lenders foresee a slight rebound in the coming three months. The BoE said the number of mortgage approvals had fallen to the lowest level in 17 months in November. The British Bankers' Association said the number of mortgage approvals between October and November had dropped the most since April 2013, while the volume of loans for house purchases continued to rise. Cooling house price inflation partly reflects weaker mortgage lending and waning demand. The latest official data show house prices had continued to ease as the annual rate slowed to 10% in November, down from 10.4% a month before, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Dramatic fall in global oil prices was beneficial for the British economy, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney reiterated on Wednesday. He also added that UK's falling prices are not the same as a sticky low inflation in the Euro bloc, and highlighted that the ECB has tools to combat deflationary threat and should use them.
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