- FTSE 100 up 13 points
- House market recovery could slow - RICS
- Currys warns of Budget-fuelled price hikes
8.06am: House market recovery at risk of slowing - RICS
Britain’s house market recovery could be hampered by recent mortgage rate increases and broader macroeconomic uncertainty, a survey on Thursday showed.
According to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), house prices grew for a fourth consecutive month in November, with its survey showing a net balance of 25% of respondents reported an uptick, against 16% in October.
New buyer enquiries remained positive with a largely unchanged reading of 12%, but the net balance of respondents highlighting higher agreed sales volumes fell from 8% to 1%.
The net balance anticipating an uptick in sales activity ahead also moderated, RICS said.
“Although the latest survey results continue to signal a steady improvement in buyer demand across the residential market, the broader macro environment is likely to pose additional headwinds moving forward,” analytics head Tarrant Parsons commented.
“Most significantly, the recent rise in mortgage interest rates may curtail the recovery in market activity before long, and this is reflected in the slightly less optimistic sales expectations data coming through this month.”
Tenant demand for rentals declined in the meantime, RICS added, while landlord instructions continued to fall, indicating “imbalance between supply and demand”.
“Moreover, measures of consumer and business confidence across the economy have deteriorated of late and, if sustained, this could begin to feed through into housing market conditions in the months ahead,” Parsons added.
7.42am: Currys flags price hikes after Budget
Currys PLC (LSE:LON:CURY) has said price rises next year are 'inevitable' as costs grow due to higher employer national insurance and minimum wage growth.
Costs are set to increase by £32 million annually on the back of October’s Budget, the electronics retailer flagged in a trading update on Thursday.
The warning adds to alarm bells from a host of firms over inflation and business failures after the Budget’s employer national insurance rate increase and threshold cut.
“Despite this unwelcome and material headwind, we remain confident,” Currys added.
Group revenue had grown by 1% to £3.9 billion over the first half of the year, the company reported, fuelled by a 6% increase within its UK and Irish business.
A £9 million adjusted pre-tax profit was recorded, against a £16 million loss over the first half of last year, while free cash flow climbed from £4 million to £50 million... Read more
7.13am: Stocks seen higher
Futures had the FTSE 100 just above the mark ahead of Thursday’s open, up four points at 8,324.
London’s blue chips had racked up a 21-point gain on Wednesday, aided by gains for gold miners, alongside the likes of Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) on news the Supreme Court would hear an appeal in a case around motor finance mis-selling.
Overnight, Asian markets largely gained after Wednesday’s in-line US inflation figures looked to clear the way for an interest rate cut in the world’s largest economy.
Back in London, focus on Thursday was on an update from Currys PLC (LSE:CURY) and house price data from RICS.
5.00am: Thursday's schedule
Currys is among those set to update on Thursday, while UK house price figures from RICS will also be in focus.
Budget-related cost pressures will be the focus when Currys updates... Read more
Announcements due:
Interims: 4GLOBAL PLC, Currys PLC (LSE:CURY), De La Rue (LON:DLAR) PLC, Gore Street Energy Storage Fund PLC, Newriver Reit PLC
Finals: Benchmark Holdings PLC, RWS Holdings (LON:RWS) PLC
US earnings: Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) Inc, Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)
AGMs: Aeorema Communications PLC, Bellway (LON:BWY) PLC, Fidelity Special Values PLC, Orosur Mining Inc (LON:OMIN), Thor Explorations Ltd (LON:THX), Westmount Energy
Economic announcements: RICS Housing Market Survey (UK), Continuing Claims (US), Initial Jobless Claims (US), Producer Price Index (US), Interest Rate Decision (EU)
Ex-dividends to reduce FTSE 100 by: 0.94