The pace of new mortgage lending may have begun to slow as a result of the Central Bank’s new lending restrictions.

Figures from the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) show the average mortgage approval rate for the three months to the end of March fell by 2 per cent.

Nonetheless, the data suggest the mortgage market remains relatively strong, with an average of 2,252 mortgages approved each month since the start of the year.

The number of mortgages approved for the quarter as a whole was 43.7 per cent up on the first quarter of last year.

This is the 13th consecutive report in which mortgage approvals have grown by 40 per cent or more on an annual basis.

The average value of mortgages approved each month since the start of the year was €430 million.

The value of mortgage approvals increased by 65.4 per cent up on the same quarter last year, but 1.8 per cent down on the average recorded a month earlier.

The Central Bank imposed new restrictions on mortgage lending at the end of January designed ostensibly to take the heat out of the market.

After two months of contraction, house prices have begun to grow again with the latest official figures for March showing prices rose by 0.9 national and by 1.1 per cent in Dublin.

Separately, in its latest annual report, the Central Bank said progress was being made in the banking sector, with the banks’ balance sheets gradually being repaired.

However, Governor Patrick Honohan noted that challenges remain, particularly around longer-term loan arrears.