Excluding the inevitable post-referendum valuation movements left British Land (BLND) with underlying post-tax profits of £199m in the six months to September; that's up from £171m a year earlier. Clearly, the fallout from the referendum result has put an end to any yield compression in London, but rents appear to be holding up well. So despite disposal of non-core retail assets of £690m (at 4 per cent above March 2016 values), net rental income rose marginally to £312m.
However, performance varied across different sectors. Retail was less affected than the office sector, but overall the group still managed to complete 769,000 sq ft of lettings and renewals at an average 11.6 per cent ahead of estimated rental value, with average lease terms of nine years. And, although down slightly, occupancy rates remained high at 98 per cent of the portfolio.