The number of new mortgages approved by lenders has grown to its highest level since June 2004.

The figures from the Bank of England deal with approvals only and not actual mortgages lent to customers.

Lenders approved 107,000 new mortgage loans in September the Bank reported. The amount of confirmed new mortgage lending also rose during September – from £7.6bn to £7.7bn.

Bank of England figures show that consumer credit, such as loans, credit cards and hire purchase agreements, is growing at an annual rate of just 10.9% – the slowest rate of growth since November 1994.

“Consumer credit growth was again relatively muted in September, pointing to continuing consumer caution,” said Howard Archer, economist at Global Insight.

“This reinforces our belief that consumer spending will remain subdued for some time to come despite September’s pick-up in retail sales.”