The upward trend in UK house prices continued in May, signalling buyer confidence in the real estate market, despite the snap general election in July.

Data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Wednesday showed the average price of UK homes rose by 2.2 per cent on a yearly basis in May, after growing by a revised 1.3 per cent in April. This was the third successive increase in prices following eight continuous months of annual declines.

Further data showed that private rents grew by 8.6 per cent from a year ago, which was slower than the 8.7 per cent rise in May. In March 2024, average rents had posted a record high annual growth of 9.2 per cent.

“The fact that the ONS has now reported three months of straight house price increases is a good indication of the growing confidence in the market,” Richard Harrison, head of mortgages at Atom bank, said.

Meanwhile, inflation in the eurozone eased in June, confirming an earlier estimate, data published by Eurostat revealed on Wednesday.

The consumer prices index for the currency bloc slid to 2.5 per cent in June from an upwardly revised 2.6 per cent in May. The price of services, which rose by 1.84 percentage points, was the main contributor to the overall rise in prices, followed by food, alcohol and tobacco, up 0.48 percentage points and non-energy industrial goods, at 0.17 percentage points higher.

However, core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, was unchanged at 2.9 per cent in June compared to the previous month. On a monthly basis, the consumer price index rose by 0.2 per cent in May, in line with the initial estimate.

Finally in the US, retail sales were unchanged in June as a drop in receipts at car dealers was offset by broad strength elsewhere, underlining the resilience of the American consumer.

The flat June reading in retail sales came on the heels of an upwardly revised 0.3 per cent gain in May, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday. Economists had forecast retail sales falling 0.3 per cent after a previously reported 0.1 per cent gain in May.

The report also showed that core retail sales, which exclude cars, gasoline, building materials and food services, jumped by 0.9 per cent in June after climbing by 0.4 per cent in May.

“Even though headline retail sales were unchanged in June, the underlying details were strong,” Michael Pearce, deputy chief US economist at Oxford Economics, said.

This article does not constitute legal and/or financial advice and is being issued for information purposes only by Bank of Valletta plc, 58, Zachary Street, Valletta. Bank of Valletta is a public limited company regulated by the MFSA and is licensed to carry out the business of banking and investment services in terms of the Banking Act (Cap. 371 of the Laws of Malta) and the Investment Services Act (Cap. 370 of the Laws of Malta).