Business news live: Government faces criticism for Cash ISA cuts and UK house price growth slows

Sainsbury’s is celebrating the highest share of the market it has held in nearly a decade.

The supermarket says it has grown its share for three years in a row and is now the highest since 2016.

Profit is expected to remain flat at around £1bn, with higher sales offset by lower profitability and price cuts.

Shares rose slightly after trading opened but are flat again now.

More now on house price growth data – and one industry expert suggests that a further lowering of prices is the only way forward at this point, with sellers tired of long wait times amid a “recalibration” of the market.

“The post-Stamp Duty lull in demand has collided with a deluge of supply,” Jonathan Hopper, CEO of Garrington Property Finders, said.

“In some areas, the flood of supply seems almost biblical. Estate agents are seeing a wave of new instructions that includes properties re-entering the market that were withdrawn from sale during last year’s uncertainty, as well as the traditional summer surge.

“This is not primarily a market correction prompted by falling demand, but one triggered by an inescapable imbalance: too many sellers, not enough serious buyers.

“On the ground, we are witnessing a clear behavioural shift. Many sellers are not financially distressed, but they are fatigued – tired of waiting for perfect conditions, and now motivated to act.

“In this environment, token price reductions of £5,000 to £10,000 just won’t cut it. The properties that are selling are those where sellers have responded with decisive, meaningful price adjustments, and their reductions are now showing up in the national data.

“If this trajectory continues, as we expect it will, the summer months may bring a series of increasingly visible price softening moments, driven not by panic, but by pragmatism.

“Sellers are being forced to adapt to a new normal, and the market data is beginning to reflect this sharp recalibration.”

Asian stocks fell overnight despite a positive session in the US.

The S&P 500 closed 0.52 per cent up and the Nasdaq was 0.47 per cent up – but in Asia, the Nikkei 225, the Hang Seng and the Asia Dow were all down.

Japan’s index was hardest hit, -1.24 per cent at the close.

This morning however, the FTSE 100 is on the rise with British companies up 0.23 per cent in early trading.

Germany and France’s benchmarks are both flat.

Rachel Reeves is set to announce cuts to the Cash ISA next month in her Mansion House speech next month.

There is no clarification yet on what the cuts will be, but previously there had been suggestion the limits could be brought down from £20,000 to £4,000.

To be clear, that’s the Cash ISA limit – not the overall allowance, which would remain at £20k.

It is likely to be part of a wider ISA refresh, aimed at getting more people investing. Industry experts have largely dismissed the idea that a Cash ISA cut would result in savers turning towards the stock market and say further education and guidance is needed.

House prices are still on the up, but were doing so at a much slower rate in June compared to last year, Nationwide data shows.

House price growth was still rising at 3.5 per cent annually in May, but in June that dropped to 2.1 per cent.

The average house price was £271,619 and the area of England with highest growth was the north, at more than 5 per cent, while East Anglia grew at barely above 1 per cent.

“The softening in price growth may reflect weaker demand following the increase in stamp duty at the start of April. Nevertheless, we still expect activity to pick up as the summer progresses, despite ongoing economic uncertainties in the global economy, since underlying conditions for potential homebuyers in the UK remain supportive,” said Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist.

“The unemployment rate remains low, earnings are rising at a healthy pace in real terms (i.e. after accounting for inflation), household balance sheets are strong and borrowing costs are likely to moderate a little if Bank Rate is lowered further in the coming quarters as we and most other analysts expect.”

People living in flats and rented homes could get the chance to install “plug-in” solar panels on roofs and balconies under Government plans.

The move forms part of the solar road-map set out by the Government to rapidly speed up the rollout of solar power across the UK as part of its efforts to shift the country to clean electricity by 2030.

Ministers said households could save around £500 a year on their bills by installing rooftop solar panels, which could also boost jobs and improve energy security.

Two-thirds of small and medium UK businesses would now vote to remain in the EU after seeing their profits harmed by Brexit, new analysis shows.

A survey of more than 500 importers and exporters found 66 per cent would choose to stay in the bloc, up from 53 per cent who voted that way during the referendum in 2016. The percentage of those who would vote to leave was 29 per cent, down from 32 per cent.

The findings, from research carried out by Critical Research, appear to be a direct response to the fact that costly rising regulations and red tape burdens have harmed the profitability of their businesses.

MPs have warned that those who invest in a Lifetime ISA (LISA) may get back less money than they put into the scheme.

However, the dual nature of the product has long been a target of criticism, as have the complex criteria for using the funds, which have led to many people losing more than they initially deposit. The £450,000 restriction on the value of the property that can be purchased has not risen with rising house prices, while to complicate matters further, two different versions of the product exist – the cash LISA, and the stocks and shares version, which allows the money in it to be invested.

Good morning and welcome to another day of business news on The Independent.

Looks like there may be a lot to get through including house prices, ISA reform, jobs and plenty more besides.