Bloomberg UK home prices could slump as much as 5% next year as unemployment rises and government incentives end, according to mortgage lender Halifax. House prices surged the most since 2016 this year as demand for more space, state support for wages and a temporary reduction in a property transaction tax offset the economic damage from the Covid-19 pandemic. That …

Bloomberg European stocks tumbled as a new strain of the coronavirus in the UK caused chaos ahead of the Christmas holiday, with regional neighbours suspending travel with the nation following another missed deadline in Brexit talks. Travel and energy shares dragged the Stoxx Europe 600 Index down around 2% at the open as Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and France closed …

Bloomberg Equity investors have given Singapore’s Sembcorp Industries Ltd. a big thumbs-up this year after it shed its loss-making marine unit. But 2021 may prove to be a lot less euphoric, according to analysts. The utilities firm is 2020’s top gainer on the benchmark Straits Times Index, after being the worst performer in the preceding five-year period. However, concerns over …