Proactive Investors - Today’s Halifax House Price Index showed that house price inflation slowed more than expected in March.
The index rose by 0.3% year-on-year in the month, slowing sharply from a downwardly revised 1.6% growth the month before and undershooting forecasts of 1.45%.
Nicky Stevenson, managing director at national estate agent group Fine & Country, noted that the market may be shifting to the buyers’ side.
She said: “An increasingly busy property market helped to prop up prices on an annual basis at the beginning of spring, but the monthly fall shows there is still some turbulence.
“Buyers are in a strong position and vendors are more open to negotiation, which is bringing prices down in some areas.
“The market is proving to be resilient in the face of ongoing economic challenges, and February’s mortgage approvals reached their highest levels since September 2022 thanks to activity levels starting to bounce back. Demand has remained steady since, with a strong showing over the Easter bank holiday weekend.”
“There is currently a healthy balance between demand and the steady drumbeat of more properties coming onto the market.
“This is encouraging more people to market their properties as they can see they have somewhere to move to, unlike a couple of years ago where a chronic undersupply of homes became a barrier for potential sellers.”
Shell (LON:RDSa) provides first-quarter guidance
Shell forecasts its production to range between 960 to 1,000 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (kboe/d), with liquefied natural gas (LNG) liquefaction volumes expected to lie between 7.2 to 7.6 million tonnes (MT) in the first quarter.
The company anticipates underlying operating expenses to be between $1 billion and $1.2 billion, with adjusted EBITDA estimates of $1.2 billion to $1.6 billion.
The Renewables and Energy Solutions segment is expected to post between a loss of $100 million to a gain of $500 million.
FTSE 100 to reverse Thursday gains
FTSE 100 futures suggest the blue-chip index will open a full 90 points lower when markets open today.
It follows a decent Thursday session with the FTSE 100 closing around 38 points higher at 7,975.
Despite futures pointing to losses, there are hopes the index can smash 8,000 to close off the week.
In company news, Shell has a first-quarter trading update due, while the Halifax House Price Index will also be out shortly.