Business news live: Nationwide say house prices rose in July and latest FTSE 100 updates as stock rally stumbles

Nationwide have released their latest data on house prices, with July showing an uplift of 2.4 per cent on average.

That’s compared to July last year, while it’s also a rise month on month after June showed a 2.1 per cent increase.

The average price of a house is now £272,664.

Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s Chief Economist, said:

“July saw a modest pick-up in the rate of annual house price growth to 2.4%. Prices increased by 0.6% month on month, after taking account of seasonal effects.

“Looking through the volatility generated by the end of the stamp duty holiday, activity appears to be holding up well. Indeed, 64,200 mortgages for house purchase were approved in June, broadly in line with the pre-pandemic average, despite the changed interest rate environment.

“Similarly, the interest rate on a typical five-year fixed-rate mortgage is around 4.3% (for a borrower with a 25% deposit). This is still over three times the all-time lows prevailing in autumn 2021, but well below the highs of c5.7% reached in late 2023.”

Before markets open up this morning, here’s PA’s recap from yesterday:

The FTSE 100 gave up early gains as a strong US inflation reading and weak mining stocks tempered enthusiasm provided by well-received earnings on both sides of the Atlantic.

The index closed down 4.13 points at 9,132.81. It had earlier traded as high as 9,190.73, a new all-time peak.

The FTSE 250 closed 186.25 points higher, 0.9%, at 21,962.83, and the AIM All-Share closed down 1.22 points, 0.2%, at 761.50.

In Europe on Thursday, the Cac 40 in Paris fell 1.1%, while the Dax 40 in Frankfurt slid 0.8%.

The FTSE 100 has surged to new record levels after investors piled back into the stock markets they deserted in April following Donald Trump’s announcements of tariffs.

The new highs are seen as good news for investors but also for most people in the UK, whose pensions will likely be invested in companies in the stock market.

Here, The Independent takes a look at what this could mean for future investments:

First up, a quick recap with yesterday’s top lines in case you missed them:

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live business coverage. Coming up, the latest companies news, stock market updates and everything else affecting UK consumers, investors and more.

Also coming up is Nationwide’s latest house price data, plus this evening is the outcome of the car finance scandal.