British property broker Savills said global economic volatility would curb activity in Europe and Asia though markets for the best properties remained resilient.

Prime London residential property was a safe haven for investors amid the current economic turmoil, which had created a two-tier British market, Savills said today.

Values for the best property in Hong Kong and Singapore were also resilient, the company said.

Underlying pretax profit in the six months to end-June rose 20 per cent to £20.6 million (€23.6 million) and turnover increased 10 per cent to £336 million.

"We currently see no material change in the outlook for our business although the potential effects of the current economic and social volatility are likely to have some impact on both commercial and residential transaction markets across our regions," chief executive Jeremy Helsby said.

Reuters