Persimmon is among a slew of listed housebuilders that have today reported sharp falls in revenue caused by the covid-19 crisis in a raft of trading updates to the City.

The UK’s most profitable housebuilder said completed sales for the first six months of the financial year to June 30 had fallen by more than a third, from 7,584 to 4,900, while its revenue fell by 32% to £1.19bn.

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