Housebuilders posted some of the biggest gains in London trading today, after news broke of a stamp duty holiday, likely to be confirmed by the chancellor on Wednesday.
Rishi Sunak is expected to announce that the stamp duty threshold will be temporarily raised to £500,000 later in the year.
Barratt Developments registered the biggest rise in the FTSE 100, its shares ending the day up almost 8% at 529.4p.
In a trading update for the 12 months to 30 June, the company said it intends to pay back the money it has received under the government’s furlough scheme, despite annual completed homes plummeting by 29% to 12,604 and net cash more than halving to £305m.
Barratt was joined in the list of the FTSE’s top risers by Persimmon, which was up roughly 6% at 2,398p, and Taylor Wimpey, up 5% at 143.95p.
Hammerson topped the risers in the FTSE 250, gaining 8.5% to finish trading at 90.38p.
The FTSE 100 closed at 6,285, up 2.1%. The FTSE 250 was up 1.4% at 17,550.
To send feedback, e-mail tim.burke@egi.co.uk or tweet @_tim_burke or @estatesgazette
