Archived article
Please note that tax, investment, pension and ISA rules can change and the information and any views contained in this article may now be inaccurate.
London share prices opened slightly lower after the long holiday weekend, as investors kept a wary eye on political brinkmanship in the US that threatens a debt default.
Financial markets in the UK re-opened on Tuesday, after being closed on Monday for the coronation of King Charles III. Markets in the rest of Europe, the US and Asia all were open on Monday, ending mixed.
The FTSE 100 index opened down 6.17 points, 0.1%, at 7,772.21. The FTSE 250 was down 74.58 points, 0.4%, at 19,377.92, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.55 points, 0.1%, at 828.24.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.1% at 777.27, and the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.5% at 16,971.24, but the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.1% at 13,540.52.
According to Halifax, the average UK house price fell by 0.3% month-on-month in April, following a 0.8% rise in March. This marks the first fall in house prices after three consecutive months of growth, the mortgage lender said.
The typical UK property now costs £286,896, compared to £287,891 a month earlier.
The annual rate of house price growth slowed to a marginal 0.1% from 1.6% in March.
‘House price movements over recent months have largely mirrored the short-term volatility seen in borrowing costs. The sharp fall in prices we saw at the end of last year after September‘