The amount of money borrowed by Irish consumers continued to grow in August, according to data released by the Central Bank yesterday.

The latest monthly statistics from the bank show that private-sector credit levels rose by 13.8 per cent in August, compared to the same month last year. When an exceptional base effect from August 2001 is stripped out, this growth declines to 12.9 per cent.

This compares to a year-on-year expansion of 12.5 per cent in July, and is the highest annual growth since February.

Within this, growth in residential mortgage lending rose above 20 per cent for the first time since July 2001, underlining anecdotal evidence of renewed buoyancy in the housing market.

Mr Don Walshe, senior economist with Goodbody Stockbrokers, said that the annual growth of 20.4 per cent in mortgage lending was high, but was not yet a cause for concern, as pent-up investor demand continued to work through the market.

"We won't really know what the underlying rate of mortgage demand is until this time next year," said Mr Walshe. "It's something to keep an eye on."

The Central Bank said that lending by credit institutions to Irish residents grew by €2.2 billion to €137.9 billion in August. This 1.6 per cent increase compares to a rise of 0.1 per cent in the same month last year. Again, a one-off base effect was at work, reducing credit to €800 million in August 2001.

Residential mortgages increased in value by €758 million in August, with other mortgages growing by €553 million.

On savings, monthly data show a rise of €310 million in money held in three-month deposit accounts, with current accounts growing by €234 million. Deposits with an agreed maturity of up to two years grew by €137 million, while special savings incentive account (SSIA) deposits with credit institutions increased by €123 million.