Home loan commitments have risen to another new high in April, and financial regulators are pleased that it has not led to easing lending standards. New figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that new housing loans have risen 3.7 percent to a record high of $31 billion (US$23.8 billion), driven by owner-occupier loans. ABS head of Finance and Wealth Katherine Keenan said the value of new home loans for owner-occupiers reached an all-time high of $23 billion (US$17.6 billion). In comparison, investor loans have returned to their highest level since mid-2017 at $8.1 billion. Keenan also noted that the number of new owner-occupier home loan commitments had fallen for the third consecutive month. However, it remained at its highest level since July 2009. New South Wales (8.6 percent) and Victoria (8.4 percent) accounted for most of the owner-occupier rise, while they fell by 7.9 percent in Western Australia. …