Thanks for joining me. House prices fell by 0.4pc in April compared to March, according to the lender Nationwide.
A typical home was worth £261,962 which was up 0.6pc compared to the same time last year.
5 things to start your day
1) HSBC plunged into succession battle as chief executive quits | Noel Quinn to step down during politically delicate period for global bank
2) Lithium miner submits plans to drill in Durham | Renewable energy storage and EVs drive demand for domestic lithium supply
3) Musk deepens ‘hardcore’ job cuts at Tesla | Billionaire calls for anyone not ‘excellent, necessary and trustworthy’ to be axed amid race to control costs
4) Amazon shrugs off China threat to post record start to year | Amazon executives are increasingly focusing their attention on competition from Chinese shopping sites
5) Slavery did not make Britain rich, finds report | New book reveals colonialism delivered only ‘modest gains’ amid debate over reparations
What happened overnight
Asian stocks fell with most of the markets in the region closed for a holiday. Meanwhile, US stocks closed out their worst month since September.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.8pc, down to 38,089.09 in early trading after the country’s factory activity experienced a milder shrink in April, as the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index from au Jibun Bank rose to 49.6 in April from 48.2 in March.
A PMI reading under 50 represents a contraction, and a reading of 50 indicates no change.
The yen continues to struggle. On Wednesday, the US dollar rose to 157.89 Japanese yen from 157.74 yen.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 1.2pc to 7,574.20. Other markets in the region were closed due to the Labor Day holiday.
In America, the S&P 500 tumbled 1.6pc to cement its first losing month in the last six. Its momentum slammed into reverse in April, falling as much as 5.5pc at one point, after setting a record at the end of March.
Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.5pc, and the Nasdaq Composite index lost 2pc.
The yield on benchmark 10-year US Treasury bonds rose to 4.68pc from 4.61pc just before yesterday’s release of data on employee wages and benefits.