Data released by the Bank of England today reveals that UK consumer borrowing in July grew at a slower rate than expected, potentially signaling cautiousness among households due to rising borrowing costs.
Consumer credit increased by £1.191 billion ($1.51 billion), falling short of the market’s projected £1.3 billion and lower than June’s £1.637 billion.
Over the 12 months leading up to July, the growth rate of consumer credit slowed to 7.3%, marking the slowest pace since December of the previous year.
Further data indicates signs of a housing market slowdown, with the Bank of England reporting a decrease of over 5,000 mortgage approvals from the previous month, bringing the total to 49,444.
Although the UK economy has thus far managed to avoid the widely anticipated recession this year, concerns over an economic slowdown intensified last week, as the composite PMI for August fell to the lowest level since January 2021.
