Redrow and Countryside stocks fall 5%
Shares in housebuilding firms have fallen sharply in the wake of the prime minister’s decision to impose a second national lockdown from Thursday this week.
Redrow led the losses, with shares down more than 5% in early trading as investors absorbed the implications of the new lockdown measures.
Countryside also saw a large drop of just under 5%, while the UK’s three biggest builders by volume – Barratt, Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey – all saw declines of between 2 and 3 per cent in the hour after markets opened.
The falls come despite the stock market overall remaining steady in the face of the news, with the FTSE 100 index slightly up in early trading. The FTSE 250 slipped back by 0.7%.
The government has made clear that it expects construction sites to remain open during the November lockdown, and has no plans to temporarily close the housing market as it did in March. However, it is likely that estate agents and housebuilder showrooms will have to close, which may impact sales.
Shares in housebuilders plummeted by an average of 41% in the wake of the first lockdown as most closed all sites while they implemented social distancing measures on sites. Most have recovered much of their value since then.
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