Forexpros — U.K. house prices declined unexpectedly in August, industry data showed on Thursday.
In a report, U.K. mortgage lender Nationwide said its house price index fell 0.6% in August, confounding expectations for a 0.1% gain.
The previous month’s figure was revised up to a 0.3% increase from 0.2%.
Year-on-year, home prices in the U.K. declined at an annualized rate of 0.4% in August, after falling by 0.4% in the preceding month.
Commenting on the report, Nationwide’s chief economist Robert Gardner said, “Sluggish demand for homes, combined with only a gradual rise in the supply of available properties, has helped to keep property prices stable since last summer.”
“We expect this trend to be maintained over the remainder of 2011, although downside risks have increased as UK and global growth prospects have weakened,” Mr. Gardner added.
Following the release of the data, the pound was fractionally lower against the U.S. dollar, with GBP/USD easing down 0.02% to trade at 1.6243.
Meanwhile, the outlook for European stock markets was mixed. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a gain of 0.35%, France’s CAC 40 futures rose 0.4%, the FTSE 100 futures edged 0.15% higher, while Germany’s DAX futures indicated a modest decline of 0.15%.
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