Investing.com - House prices in the U.K. rose more than expected in January, easing concerns over the health of the housing market, industry data showed on Thursday.
In a report, the Halifax Bank of Scotland said its House Price Index rose by a seasonally adjusted 2.0% last month, blowing past expectations for a 0.1% increase.
U.K. house prices increased 1.1% in December, upwardly revised from a previously reported gain of 0.9%.
House prices in the three months to January were 8.5% higher than in the same three months a year earlier, above forecasts for a 7.8% gain and unchanged from an increase of 7.8% in December.
GBP/USD was trading at 1.5203 from around 1.5207 ahead of the announcement, while EUR/GBP was at 0.7484 from 0.7483 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were broadly lower after the open. London’s FTSE 100 shed 0.65%, the EURO STOXX 50 declined 1.1%, France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.8%, while Germany's DAX slumped 0.4%.