U.K. stocks made modest gains on Friday, buoyed by data indicating an increase in house prices for May following two months of declines. According to the Nationwide Building Society, house prices rose by 0.4% month-on-month in May, counteracting April's 0.4% drop, thereby demonstrating the housing market's resilience despite persistent affordability challenges. Consequently, the annual increase in house prices surged to 1.3% from April's 0.6%.
Additionally, the Bank of England released its mortgage approval figures for April, revealing a slight dip. Mortgage approvals for house purchases in the U.K. fell to 61,100 in April, down slightly from 61,300 in March.
The FTSE 100 index saw an increase of 29 points, or 0.4%, bringing it to 8,260, following a 0.6% rise on Thursday.
In corporate developments, construction giant Galliford Try Holdings experienced a spike of over 3%, thanks to securing two government contracts valued at £101 million. Conversely, JD Sports Fashion dropped nearly 7% after reporting full-year profits that fell short of expectations. Online betting company Flutter Entertainment also saw a decline, falling 5.4% after announcing the appointment of a new group Chief Financial Officer.
