

Market Analysis
Britain's housing market lost steam in May as the likelihood of immediate rate cuts by the Bank of England diminished, leading to a drop in buyer demand and house prices, according to a survey released on Thursday.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) reported that its monthly net balance of house prices fell to -17, down from a downwardly revised -7 in April, marking the lowest reading since January.
Higher-than-expected inflation data last month in both Britain and the United States caused investors to postpone their expectations for the start of BoE rate cuts to late 2024. Previously, the BoE's June 20 meeting had been considered a potential date for rate cuts.
As a result, mortgage rates for new buyers increased due to the adjusted expectations regarding rate cuts.
RICS' measure of new buyer enquiries decreased to -8 in May from -1 in April, the lowest since November.
Affordability remains a key political issue ahead of the July 4 national election, with house prices having risen by about a fifth since the last election in December 2019.
Both Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party and the opposition Labour Party, which is leading in the polls, have pledged to increase house-building if elected.
"The recent recovery in the UK housing market seems to have reversed recently, with buyer demand slightly losing momentum due to the upward movements in mortgage rates over the past couple of months," said Tarrant Parsons, RICS senior economist.
"Nevertheless, expectations suggest this will delay, rather than derail, a modest improvement going forward."
Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author.