Persimmon has reported a 30% drop in its new home build rate for the first quarter of 2023 after it sought to conserve cash during last year’s economic turmoil.

The housebuilding giant, in a trading update for the three months to 31 March, said its build rate for the three months to 31 March, when comparing equivalent homes, fell 30% from 252 a week in the first quarter of 2022 to 176 units. Its completions fell 42% from over the same period from 1,950 to 1,136 homes.