Housing sector shares fell across the board on Tuesday after Wilson Bowden issued a very downbeat statement about the market ahead of its interim results.

Shares in the company fell 31p, or 3%, to 1119p when it announced that selling prices had remained flat, despite the fact that it had increased incentives. The statement added that reservation levels had not recovered in the first half of the year, although the company was expected to deliver “modest” year-on-year growth in the second half.

It warned: “The final outcome for 2005 however, continues to be very much dependent on the return of buyer confidence in the autumn.”

Housebuilders hit as a result of the negative news included Wimpey (-2.9%), Barratt (-1.8%), Persimmon (-1.5%) and Taylor Woodrow (-1.5%).