Savills sees tough H1 as 2022 profits fall 16%

Real estate agent Savills said it expected a tough first half of the current year as it reported a fall in annual profits.

The company on Thursday said pre-tax profit for the year to December 31 fell 16% to £154m, slightly better than expected. Revenue rose 7% to £2.3bn.

"In the year ahead, challenging macro conditions are expected to continue with inflation and interest rates remaining in focus for some time,” Savills said.

“As a result, the speed at which individual investment markets adjust to the cost of debt is uncertain, although certain markets, such as the UK, are recalibrating faster than in the past, and will be helped by the lack of development supply and an overall trend to sustainability.”

It added that the easing of Covid restrictions in China would open up markets in the region.

"We have started 2023 broadly in line with our expectations. However, it is clear that, at this stage, predictions for the full year are characterised by a wide range of possible outcomes; we believe that H1 2023 will be more challenging than its 2022 comparative; however, we expect progressive improvement through the second half of the year.”

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com