June mortgage approvals came in at 58,200, above the 57,200 expected, after a prior 56,200 reading that was revised to 56,600.

Net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals in the UK rose to £7.7 billion in June from £3.3 billion in May. Mortgage approvals also increased on the month, but remained below the running six-month average of about 61,400. Within the breakdown, approvals for remortgaging rose to 34,200 in June from 33,800 in May. That mix suggests activity in the housing market is still uneven, with refinancing holding up even as overall approvals remain below recent norms.

Net borrowing of consumer credit edged up to £1.8 billion, in line with the six-month average. Borrowing through credit cards totalled £0.9 billion, while other forms of consumer credit also accounted for £0.9 billion in June.

The annual growth rate of all consumer credit stood at 9.1% in June, up slightly from 9.0% in May. Credit card borrowing, however, accelerated further to 12.5%, remaining well into double digits amid economic uncertainty stemming from the US-Iran conflict.

Stronger consumer credit growth can sometimes indicate a more resilient economy, but in this case it may also reflect households borrowing out of necessity. As the cost of living rises, some households are relying on credit cards and overdrafts to cover essential daily expenses, which makes the monthly lending data closely watched for signs of strain alongside broader household spending trends.

That picture is consistent with UK credit default data published earlier this month. A recent Bank of England survey found that the share of lenders reporting higher default rates over the previous three months exceeded those reporting declines by 34%. That was up sharply from about 18% in the first quarter and marked the highest reading since 2009.