Housebuilder Persimmon saw shares fall sharply on Wednesday as housing completions dipped slightly in the third quarter and the company warned of rising building costs heading into 2025.

Housebuilder Persimmon said it is on track to hit full-year targets for housing completions this year after an in-line third-quarter performance, with demand helped by improvements in customer sentiment as interest rates begin to reduce and affordability improves.

Prudential reported an 11% increase in new business profit to $2.35bn for the first nine months of the year on Wednesday, buoyed by its multi-channel distribution strategy and strong geographic diversity.