Signs of stabilisation in the housing market encouraged lenders to approve more mortgages in June, while the flow of lending to British firms fell at a slower pace in May, Bank of England data has shown.

There was also upbeat news from property website Rightmove which said there were growing signs that the past year’s price falls have bottomed out, and from the council of mortgage lenders, which said gross lending hit a six-month high in June.

However, economists said the weakness of business lending did not bode well for a strong recovery. – (Reuters)