The UK housing market continues in its downward trend with approvals for mortgage loans down by almost 50% on last year.

The British Bankers' Association said approvals for home loans -- an indicator of future house prices -- fell to 35,417 last month from 43,147 in February, the lowest since the series began in 1997 and posting an annual drop of 46.2 percent.

Overall mortgage approvals, including refinancing and equity withdrawal, fell to their lowest since 2000.
Earlier this week the Government announced that it would be making at least £50
billion pounds available for banks in the hope that some resemblance of confidence will be restored to the banking system. The Government initiative is designed so banks will resume lending to each other which in turn will enable them to lend more to consumers and companies.

Banks and mortgage lenders, including HBOS Plc and Nationwide Building Society, have refused to pass on three Bank of England interest-rate cuts since December to customers because of higher funding costs. Abbey, Britain's second-largest mortgage lender, said this week it will cut rates on some adjustable loans.

``Mortgage activity is being pummelled by a toxic combination of stretched affordability and very tight lending conditions,'' said Howard Archer, chief European economist at Global Insight Inc. Today's report underlines ``the pressure for concerted, sustained action to try and get banks to lend to each other, so that more liquidity is available to fund mortgage lending and market interest rates come down.''