House prices in Britain edged up again last month, according to the latest monthly survey from the Nationwide building society. Prices rose 0.4pc in February from January and were up 24.8pc on a year-on-year basis, Nationwide said. In January, house prices rose 1.7pc on the month and 26pc year-on-year.
The latest figures follow claims by Halifax yesterday that house prices surged 1.7pc in February and a warning from the IMF last night of a possible bubble in the housing market, which could have deflationary pressures if burst. Analysts at Halifax said the surge in house prices in February was partly due to increased demand in the wake of the surprise interest rate cut by the Bank of England early last month. Policymakers had held off on easing borrowing costs for more than a year on concern of that a rate reduction would help to overheat the market. //www.fxcentre.com