Danish house prices fall further

Copenhagen: Denmark’s house prices fell for the third quarter as a frozen property market, regional banking crisis and faltering economy keep buyers at bay.

House prices in the second quarter dropped 3.2% from a year earlier, the Association of Danish Mortgage Banks said. Prices slipped 0.5% from the first three months of the year, it said.

“The market’s main problem is there are too many homes for sale,” said Niels Roenholt, senior economist with Jyske Bank. “Weak and uncertain development in the global economy continues to make many cautious.”

Weak consumer spending and flagging exports prompted Denmark’s central bank last week to cut its forecast for economic growth through 2013.

The country’s union of financial employees said thousands of members may lose their jobs in coming months.