Bellway leaps 51% as Far East snaps up its flats

Housebuilder Bellway is cashing in on high-rise flats in the East End as buyers from the Far East pump cash into the London property market.

The completion of several schemes in Poplar and Limehouse has sucked in funds from the likes of China and Malaysia willing to buy off-plan.

Along with schemes in Greenwich, this has triggered a boom for Bellway's Thames Gateway regional business.

The division's average selling prices are up nearly 40% to £212,694 on last year.

Chief executive John Watson said: "We were marketing in Kuala Lumpur last week. There will always be half a dozen housebuilders there competing for business."

His comments came as Bellway posted a healthy 51% rise in profits to £67.2 million for the year to July 31, boosted by lower build costs and higher sales.

The firm, which has never missed a dividend through three recessions since 1979, hiked the payout by almost a third.

London accounted for around fifth of the builder's 4922 completions this year but Bellway is also seeing evidence of a revival in stagnant markets elsewhere in the country.