Bank of England: Net consumer credit rose in January

Thursday, March 18th 2010

Official figures from the Bank of England show that there was a higher total flow of net consumer credit in January.

According to the Trends in Lending report for March, there has been an ease in the rate of annual decline in the stock of lending.

There was a rise in net mortgage lending in the UK but a drop in gross mortgage lending, although this did rebound slightly in February.

In the final quarter of last year mortgage arrears rates fell, with many lenders expecting to see stable levels for the next few months.

Regarding business lending, there has been a fall in recent months - with less money being borrowed by small and medium-sized firms, the report revealed.

In order to compile the report, the Bank collected data from various official sources and sectors.

The chancellor established the Lending Panel in 2008 to monitor lending in the country's economy and the Bank of England collects data on the panel's behalf.