Britain’s top share index climbed to its highest level in nearly a year yesterday, led higher by miners, and with ITV soaring after a well-received trading update.

Investor interest in British rental property declined by more than a quarter last month compared with a year ago, dampened by new tax changes aimed at cooling the booming buy-to-let market, according to data results released yesterday.

Asking prices for houses in England and Wales saw their biggest rise in the month to mid-September for 13 years as cheap borrowing and a lack of available properties led to market “extremes”, property website Rightmove said yesterday.

The FTSE 100 Index was in positive territory today after the latest opinion poll on the Scottish referendum showed a lead for the No campaign.

Banks and building societies have reported their best month for mortgage lending since 2008, in a further sign that the housing market is recovering.

Further signs of a confidence boost in the housing market were reported today, as a property search website said that the number of new year house sellers had reached its highest level since 2008.

Only a quarter of people planning to buy a home in the UK next year will be first-time buyers - a share which is still well below the levels needed for a "healthy" market, research has found.

Lloyds was the biggest faller on London’s leading shares index today after it suffered a £3.5bn (€4.12bn) loss and warned of further problems ahead.

Asking prices for London homes rose to close to a record this month, helping push national values up the most in almost a decade, the operator of Britain’s biggest property website said in a report yesterday.

World markets staged a bounce back today as oil prices steadied and offset disappointing economic data in the UK and US.

Interest by Britons in Irish property still remains high despite Ireland’s economic woes, it was revealed today.

The London market bounced back from earlier losses today triggered by concerns surrounding the sovereign debt crisis in Ireland.

The London market struggled to find direction today as sentiment was weighed down by ongoing fears of a bail out for Ireland’s troubled economy.

The FTSE 100 Index remained near a four-month high today as encouraging signs from the US economy settled investors at the end of a nervy week.

UK property asking prices fell for the second month in a row as the market was hit by over-supply and subdued activity in the summer holidays, according to research today.

Lloyds Banking Group missed out on a rally for the wider London market today after the part-nationalised bank posted a £6.3bn (€7.05bn) annual loss.

Lloyds Banking Group bucked an improved trend for the London market today after the part-nationalised bank posted a £6.3bn (€7bn) annual loss.

The London market finished off weak January trading with a surge today as better-than-expected US economic data boosted investor confidence.

A rebound among blue chip banks failed to lift the FTSE 100 Index today as stocks fell in the wake of a shock plunge in US home sales.

Blue-chip banks were on a firmer footing today as immediate fears over America’s plans for radical banking reforms began to ease.

UK house prices jumped by 1.2% during the first week of January as confident new sellers hiked their asking prices, research showed today.

Blue chip banks made strong gains today as news that Bank of America will repay its $45bn (€30bn) US bailout cash outweighed reports of the sector’s heavy exposure to Dubai.

The London market soared 2% to a fresh 10-month high today as shares rallied for a fourth session in a row.

London’s blue chip share index rallied towards the 4800 barrier today as investors shrugged off economic doubts.

The FTSE 100 Index slid as much as 3% today after nervous investors bailed out of Lloyds Banking Group and figures showed the US economy contracted at its fastest pace for more than a quarter of a century.

Lloyds Banking Group slid 20% today after it kept investors guessing on its involvement in the scheme to insure billions of pounds of toxic assets.

Britain stands on the brink of recession today after a variety of dire forecasts on the UK economy.

A weaker dollar and fluctuating oil prices coloured trading today as the London market slipped into the red.

Top-flight stocks drifted lower today despite a solid session for miners cheered by results from BHP Billiton.

British home sellers have slashed their asking prices by more than £4,000 (€5,000) during the past month as the number of properties on the market hits a new high, figures showed today.

The number of UK properties changing hands fell by 13% during May as the credit crunch continued to take its toll on the market, British government figures showed today.

Record profits and a return to dividend payments from British Airways helped put the London market on the front foot today.

There were fresh signs of faltering confidence in the housing market in UK today after Halifax Bank of Scotland sold its 13% stake in property website Rightmove.

London’s blue chip shares retreated into the red today as stocks were hit by bad housing market news on both sides of the Atlantic.

The number of people planning to buy a new home in the UK hit a new low in February as consumers waited to see how the property market developed, an estate agents’ trade body said today.

A slower house market held no fears for British advertising group Rightmove today as the company said advertisers were more likely to switch to the web in an attempt to curb costs.

Optimism ahead of results from the banking sector and a surprise rise in house prices helped the FTSE 100 Index surge by nearly 3% today.

House prices in the UK have rebounded by a strong 2.7% during September, more than wiping out the previous month's fall, figures showed today.

The UK’s leading property website Rightmove today continued its strong growth with nine in ten UK properties for sale now featuring on the website.