Gross mortgage lending down 19 percent

Gross mortgage lending in May was down 19 percent compared to the same month last year, and 2 percent on April.

CML director general, Michael Coogan did not seem too upset by the numbers. She said:

"The remortgage market remains on track to meet our forecast for growth this year, demonstrating the resilience of the market despite recent bad news. However, by comparison, the next few months will remain very weak for house purchase activity for the funding reasons which are now well rehearsed. We still await first signs of the Bank of England’s Special Liquidity Scheme indirectly helping to ease the current logjam."

Nevertheless, the message from the CML seems a little confused. If we are to believe Mr. Coogan, the UK housing market "remains on track", yet "will remain very weak", and it is awaiting the arrival of the special liquidity scheme that will help ease "the current logjam.

There was no mention of overvalued housing, over-burdened home-debtors, increasing payments difficulties, low rental yields, or rising interest rates. So it should be OK to raise interest rates.