UK Property Spending Surge

The UK's leading independent real estate consultancy, Knight Frank states that the UK economy will witness a property spending surge this year as buyers cheer the Conservatives' election victory’. Global investors will plough £48.4bn into London commercial property this year in a big bet on the capital's fortunes, the firm said - up 21% on 2019.

A quarter of the investment is expected to come from Hong Kong and China while a further 25% is set to come from the UK.

Continental firms are also showing confidence in the UK’s prospects after Brexit, illustrated by the 29% cash that is predicted to arrive from Europe.

Nick Braybrook, head of London capital markets at Knight Frank, said: "London’s stability and global status is attracting international investors who see a competitive economy, strong occupier market and high office yields, compared with other global cities.

"We expect the sheer weight of international demand for London assets to push prices on, and we have already seen an increase in transactions as activity ramps up following the UK general election result."

The construction industry has also shown signs on that its long slump could soon be over.

Optimism in the sector surged in January on hopes of a return to growth, according to an influential survey of businesses by data firm IHS Markit.

Its headline index rose from 44.4 in December to 48.4 in January, the highest level since May 2019. This is still below 50, meaning the sector remains in contraction.

The index tracking business expectations jumped to 69, the highest level since April 2018, indicating growing anticipation of a resurgence for the industry following the decisive general election result.

Jan Crosby, of consultancy KPMG, said: “As the horizon clears and with the expectation that projects will soon come on-stream, the more spade-ready we can be, the better. We’re starting to see interest from international investors in the UK again as they anticipate more infrastructure spend.

“Firms are starting to take a more strategic interest and are eager to gain a foothold in large UK infrastructure projects. Housing has latterly proved resilient and should remain steady for the next six months.

"As we move into the spring selling season, this should put the sector into the most stable position we’ve been in for quite some time.”

Source: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2020/02/05/boris-bounce-continues-new-data-shows-improvement-property-construction/