The chief executive of Persimmon has said the housebuilder had an “excellent” start to the second half of the year, with a near-50% annual rise in sales since the start of July and a growing order book.
The upbeat outlook comes as the company published results for the first six months of the year, confirming a fall in revenue of a third to £1.19bn and a 35% drop in home completions to 4,900. Pretax profit of £292.4m was 42% lower than a year ago.
Chief executive Dave Jenkinson said the second half of the year has started well. Average weekly private sales rates are up 49% year-on-year since July, and the company’s order book, at £2.5bn, is 20% larger than a year ago. The company expects to have delivered 45% of its anticipated second-half legal completions by the end of September.
Nonetheless, Jenkinson acknowledged the challenges still ahead for the business.
“A number of factors make it unusually difficult to assess the outlook beyond the short term,” he said. “Uncertainty related to the future impact of Covid-19 on UK economic conditions persists with, in particular, concerns over a potential second wave and over UK employment levels following the end of the government’s furlough scheme in the autumn.
“Uncertainties also remain with respect to the outcome of negotiations on a future trade deal with the European Union. Each of these has the potential to impact negatively on customer confidence and the demand for new homes in the medium term.”
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