UK commercial property values fell less sharply in August than the month before, a closely-watched index showed on Thursday, suggesting concerns about the impact of Britain’s vote to leave the European Union on the sector may be easing.
Overall property values for UK commercial assets fell 0.65 percent year-on-year in August, the IPD real estate index, compiled by MSCI, showed on Thursday.
This compared with a 2.8 percent fall in July, which was the biggest slide since March 2009 and reflected a sharp drop in market confidence after the June 23 vote.
The UK property market was a focal point for investor uncertainty in the days after the referendum, and at one point more than 18 billion pounds ($24 billion) worth of commercial property funds were suspended from trading.
Fears that firms might move jobs to Europe, particularly in financial services, and return leased office space, along with concerns of a slowdown in retail spending, hit investment in the sector and demand for properties.
However, with the market showing signs of settling down, some of the suspended retail property funds have reopened.
Fund manager Columbia Threadneedle said on Monday it planned to lift the suspension in trading of its UK retail property fund, which would make it the third to do so.
MSCI data showed on Thursday that total returns from UK commercial property slipped 0.1 percent in August, compared with a drop of 2.4 percent in July.
The IPD real estate index is one of Britain’s most widely watched commercial real estate data surveys, and tracks all sectors including retail and office property.
The August index was based on data from 3,307 property investments with a total capital value of 46.4 billion pounds, it said.
[Source:- Reauters]
