Gross mortgage lending up 5 percent

LONDON (Reuters) - Gross mortgage lending totalled an estimated 24.8 billion pounds in July, a 27 percent decline on the same month last year but up 5.0 percent on June's levels, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said on Wednesday.

"While there was a small month-on-month increase in activity, it represented a notable decline from a year ago. This continues the weaker picture seen in June and points towards the more subdued levels of lending we are likely to see in the second half of 2008," Bob Pannell, CML head of research, said in a statement.