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UK mortgage approvals rise in June for first time since January
British mortgage approvals picked up in June and were stronger than expected after falling for the previous four months while banks introduced more stringent checks on borrowers. The Bank of England said on Tuesday that mortgage approvals numbered 67,196 last month, up from 62,007 in May. Analysts had forecast a smaller rise in approvals to 62,600. Monthly mortgage approvals are still short of the 90,000 level seen before the 2008 financial crisis, and below a recent peak of just over 76,000 in January. But house prices have risen rapidly in recent months amid a shortage of new home-building. BoE Governor Mark Carney ... (full story)