Shaftesbury reports 'buoyant' Christmas trading rebound

Property manager Shaftesbury said its estate in London’s West End saw “buoyant” footfall and trading through the Christmas period, despite the broader cost-of-living crisis.

The company on Monday said occupier turnover grew 42% year on year in the three months to December 31 and 6% vs pre-pandemic December 2019 at its hospitality, retail and leisure tenants - outperforming the wider West End.

“This strong performance is in stark contrast to the more subdued spending and consumer confidence reported nationally,” Shaftesbury said.

"The sustained recovery in footfall and trading previously reported continued into the important Christmas and New Year period. Whilst domestic visits to our villages were flat against December 2021, having been impacted by a series of rail strikes, footfall was buoyed by continued growth in international tourist numbers."

Shaftesbury said valuation of its overall properties fell to £3.11bn from £3.19bn in the prior quarter, mainly due to an increase in yields.

Shaftesbury is awaiting the outcome of a competition probe into its £3.5bn merger with fellow West End landlord Capital & Counties.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com