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One strategist, however is looking keenly at European equities, and notes that "Europe isn't a boring market." "You would hope that will translate through to the stock market in terms of company earnings growth in Europe. "While you might see some kind of short-term downturn, in the longer-term the picture is very positive for the sector," Field added. He sees value in payments, which he described as "one of the most undervalued parts of European financial services." The sector has trailed market performance, with valuations looking "interesting" over the last 12 months, Morningstar noted in its recent report.

Persons: Michael Field, Field, Morningstar Organizations: CNBC Pro, European Central Bank, Consumer, Swatch Group, Financial, Morningstar, ING Bank, Group, Health, Novo Nordisk Locations: U.S, Europe, Netherlands, British, Swiss

☆ Modular homes were hailed as a solution to housing crises. But the sector is now struggling to scale
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Vicky Mckeever | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Modern tech-enabled versions of modular housing promise a faster, more sustainable solution to housing crises, according to experts. The fact that modular housing is also made in a controlled factory environment means less waste is generated, while also resulting in more energy-efficient homes. A 2022 report from industry group Make UK Modular highlighted that 80% fewer vehicle movements were needed to development sites with modular building. In the U.K. last year, Ilke Homes collapsed, while Legal & General moved to wind down its modular housing factory. By comparison, a Make UK Modular report published last year said more than 3,000 modular homes were being built in the U.K. annually, though there was capacity to build five times that number.

Persons: Prefabrication, William the Conqueror, Andrew Shepherd, Shepherd, Modulous, Jonatan Pinkse, Pinkse, Suzanne Peters, Daniel Paterson, prefabrication, Richard Valentine, Valentine, Selsey Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, Sears, CNBC, University of Cambridge, Edinburgh Napier University, Ilke, Legal, King's College, Alliance Manchester Business School, Savills Research, McKinsey, Company, Ikea, Vonovia Locations: Foston, Derby, housebuilding, England, U.S, King's College London, Wales, Selsey, Sweden, Japan, prefabrication, Berlin, Germany

☆ Germany’s housebuilding sector is in a 'confidence crisis' as the economy struggles
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Patrick Pleul | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesGermany's housebuilding sector has gone from bad to worse in recent months. "The housebuilding sector is, I would say, a little bit in a confidence crisis," Dominik von Achten, chairman of German building materials company Heidelberg Materials, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Thursday. In January both the current sentiment and expectations for the German residential construction sector fell to all-time lows, according to data from the Ifo Institute for Economic Research. The business climate reading fell to a negative 59 points, while expectations dropped to negative 68.9 points in the month. Habeck pointed to higher interest rates as a key challenge for the economy, explaining that those had led to reduced investments, especially in the construction sector.

Persons: Patrick Pleul, Dominik von Achten, CNBC's, Klaus Wohlrabe, Robert Habeck, Wohlrabe, It's, Achten Organizations: Getty, Heidelberg Materials, Ifo Institute for Economic Research, Hamburg Commercial Bank, PMI, Climate Locations: Germany, Ifo, Heidelberg

☆ German housebuilding is in a 'confidence crisis,' Heidelberg Materials CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailGerman housebuilding is in a 'confidence crisis,' Heidelberg Materials CEO saysHeidelberg Materials CEO Dominik von Achten discusses the company's results and the state of the German housebuilding sector.

Persons: Dominik von Achten Organizations: Heidelberg

☆ Germany slashes 2024 growth forecast to just 0.2% as economy in 'tricky waters,' minister says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Robert Habeck, German Minister for Economy and Climate Protection and Vice Chancellor, is pictured during the weekly meeting of the cabinet on February 21, 2024 in Berlin, Germany. Germany's gross domestic product is now expected to grow by just 0.2% this year, as the country wades in "tricky waters," German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said Wednesday. The revised GDP growth forecast is down from a previous estimate of 1.3%. Speaking during a news briefing, the minister attributed the revised forecast to an unstable global economic environment and to the low growth of world trade, alongside higher interest rates. "The economy is in tricky waters," Habeck said in a statement released online, according to a CNBC translation.

Persons: Robert Habeck, Habeck Organizations: Protection, CNBC Locations: Berlin, Germany, Ukraine

☆ German housebuilding is collapsing — and could drag the economy down with it
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Fast forward two years, and German housebuilding looks like it's collapsing, putting pressure on both his hard-to-reach goal, but also the overall economy of the country. Over 22% of companies surveyed reported the cancellation of residential construction projects in Germany in October, a new record high. Expectations for the residential construction industry fell to what the Ifo described as an "exceptional low." "Things continue to go from bad to worse in Germany's construction sector. But it's also the jobs market that could be impacted by troubles in the homebuilding sector, Brzeski noted.

Persons: Soeren, Germany's Olaf Scholz, —, Cyrus de la Rubia, Carsten Brzeski, Brzeski, Klaus Wohlrabe, Wohlrabe, it's Organizations: Getty, Ifo Institute for Economic Research, Hamburg Commercial Bank, German Federal, Office, ING, CNBC, European Central Bank, ECB, European Commission Locations: downtown Wittenberg, Germany, Hamburg

☆ Miners boost FTSE 100 on China optimism; Vistry jumps
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Signage for the London Stock Exchange Group is seen outside of offices in Canary Wharf in London, Britain, August 3, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies FTSE 100 up 0.6%, FTSE 250 adds 0.4%Sept 11 (Reuters) - The UK's exporter-heavy FTSE 100 index opened higher on Monday boosted by miners after positive China data signalled stability in the world's second-largest economy, while Vistry shares jumped after the homebuilder kept its annual profit outlook. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index (.FTSE) rose 0.6% in early trade, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 index (.FTMC) was up 0.4%. Vistry Group (VTYV.L) jumped 14.4% after the British homebuilder said it would merge its affordable-housing business 'Partnerships' with its Housebuilding operations, while maintaining its annual profit forecast. Reporting by Siddarth S in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi AichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Toby Melville, British homebuilder, Pascal Soriot, Siddarth, Rashmi Organizations: London Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Vistry, AstraZeneca, The Mail, Barclays, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Canary Wharf, London, Britain, China, British, Bengaluru

☆ Vistry flags tough housing market, reiterates profit forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 20 (Reuters) - British homebuilder Vistry Group (VTYV.L) on Thursday joined its bigger rivals in flagging an intensifying slowdown in the housing market but retained its annual profit forecast, reflecting resilience in its key affordable homes business. The FTSE 250 (.FTMC) firm, which works with local authorities and housing associations to build affordable homes, expects adjusted pre-tax profit for the year ending Dec. 31 to be in excess of 450 million pounds. Vistry, which is typically better insulated against housing market shocks as demand for affordable housing is high, said it was able to mitigate the slowdown in the market through bulk transactions in both its Partnerships and Housebuilding businesses. However, the group said its Housebuilding business, which is similar to its rivals' operations, had faced "more challenging market conditions" in the half-year period with the broader macro-economic challenges particularly impacting first-time buyers. Reporting by Suban Abdulla in London and Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Greg Fitzgerald, Suban Abdulla, Aby Jose Koilparambil, Sonia Cheema, Kate Holton Organizations: Vistry, Thursday, FTSE, Bank of England, British, Countryside, Thomson Locations: British, London, Bengaluru

☆ UK housebuilders face slow and painful refurb
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - UK housebuilding is facing a bleak future. In previous slowdowns, the UK’s Conservative Party bailed out the sector with packages like Help to Buy, which subsidized mortgages to help buyers. After Wednesday’s 9% share price decline, it’s share price is now worth less than half of what it was before the outbreak of Covid-19. With little help on the horizon, UK housebuilders face a slow and painful rebuild. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ L&G succession planning misses the mark
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Chief executives always like to see their company’s share price dip when they announce their departure. But it might also express mild discontent with the board’s succession planning. Even so, the smoothest way to sign off on Wilson’s tenure would have been to announce his successor now, rather than the news it might take up to a year to find one. After all, the L&G board had long enough to identify a suitable internal candidate. Chairman John Kingman’s reticence may reflect a preference for a big-hitting external candidate to grow the company beyond UK borders.

☆ British PM Sunak faces new demands from his fractious party
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Alistair Smout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Conservative Party has already ousted two prime ministers in 2022 - Boris Johnson and Liz Truss - and trails the opposition Labour party in the polls by double digits, with another national election expected in 2024. Sunak became prime minister in October when Truss resigned after less than two months. Sunak has reversed those plans and instead raised taxes, reassuring financial markets, but upsetting some Conservative lawmakers. A separate group - Conservative Democratic Organisation - was also launched on Sunday aiming to "take back control" of the party on behalf of the party's membership, after Johnson and Truss were ousted - and Sunak selected - by the parliamentary party. Johnson and Truss were both chosen via a vote by the Conservative Party's membership of around 170,000.

☆ UK construction growth ebbs away as economy falters: PMI
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Kaori Kaneko | Kantaro Komiya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Growth in Britain's construction industry slowed to a crawl in November as high borrowing costs and the gloomy economic outlook crimped building work, a survey showed on Tuesday. The S&P Global/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to a three-month low of 50.4 from 53.2 in October, barely above the 50 dividing line between growth and contraction. The survey's gauge of future activity sank to its lowest level since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, consistent with recession. With demand fading from the economy, various measures of price pressures from consumers and businesses have started to ease - including in Thursday's survey. The construction PMI's index of input prices fell in November to its lowest level since January 2021.

☆ Caterpillar posts higher adjusted profit on strong equipment demand
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 27 (Reuters) - Heavy-equipment maker Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N) posted a rise in third-quarter profit on Thursday as robust demand, low inventories and raised prices helped it mute the impact of higher material and freight costs. "We continued to see healthy demand across most of our end markets during the third quarter," Chief Executive Jim Umpleby said. In the previous quarter, the company had flagged a bigger drop in demand for its excavators in its growth market, China. Caterpillar's revenue for the quarter through September rose to $15.0 billion from $12.4 billion a year ago. Adjusted profit rose to $3.95 per share from $2.66 per share a year earlier.

☆ FTSE slides as UK's mini budget fails to soothe recession worries
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Sruthi Shankar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The London Stock Exchange Group offices are seen in the City of London, Britain, December 29, 2017. read moreThe internationally focussed FTSE 100 (.FTSE) extended losses, falling 1.6% to its lowest since July 15, while the domestically focussed FTSE 250 index (.FTMC) dropped 1.1% to hit near two-year lows. It is among UK's worst performing sectors this year as rising rates sparked worries about affordability. read moreOil (.FTNMX601010) and mining (.FTNMX551020) majors were the biggest drags on the FTSE 100 as commodity prices weakened against a strong dollar. read moreSmiths Group (SMIN.L) rose 4.1% after the industrial technology group provided upbeat full-year 2023 forecast.

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