LONDON, Dec 18 - British mortgage lending rose at a slower pace in November after the Bank of England raised interest rates for the first time in nearly four years at the start of the month, industry figures showed on Thursday. The British Bankers' Association said lending secured on dwellings rose by an underlying 4.8 billion pounds last month, considerably less than the record 6.1 billion pounds increase reported in the month before. "Whilst the November rise in interest rates may not have had an immediate impact on consumer demand, growth in the banks' mortgage lending was slower than the strong rise in October," said BBA director of statistics David Dooks . "It is too soon to say whether this signifies moderating demand or simply a timing shift between the two months." The BoE raised borrowing costs in November by a quarter-point off a 48-year low of 3.5 percent, partly because it was worried consumers were taking on too much debt.
Minutes of the central bank's rate-setting committee's December meeting showed the deputy governor in charge of financial stability wanted to raise borrowing costs again in the hope that it would deter consumers from taking on more debt. Separate data from the Building Societies' Association, however, indicated little slowdown in the housing market. The BSA said approvals, which are loans agreed but not yet made, were 40 percent higher than a year earlier. "As we come to end of the year there is little sign of a slowdown in building society mortgage activity. Levels of lending remained well above those a year ago," said BSA director-general Adrian Coles.//