Savills expects 2021 to prove more profitable than 2019.
The agent said: “Tthe continued strength of UK prime residential markets has exceeded our expectations,” while “better than anticipated improvements” had boosted performance in the UK commercial capital transaction markets.
In a trading update published this morning, Savills said that, since its half-year results in June, the group had seen strong trade in the UK and Asia Pacific regions. It added that Continental Europe and the Middle East and North America had started to recover, but had yet to return to 2019 levels of activity.
Savills Investment Management was performing ahead of expectations, bolstered by the early exercise of the option to acquire the remaining interests in DRC Capital in May.
Savills added that the anticipated tapering of market volumes in its segments was now expected to take effect in 2022, rather than H2 2021. As a result, the financial year for the UK business is likely to “materially exceed both our earlier expectations for 2021 and the outturn for 2019”. It also expects outperformance in Asia Pacific on both bases.
In addition to improved trading, Savills said it had benefited low levels of discretionary expenditure, which is expected to continue until 2022.
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