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Property development company British Land reported wider losses on lower rental income as the Covid-19 pandemic heaped further pressure on struggling retailers and forced them to enter administration.
For the 12 months ended 31 March, pre-tax losses widened to £1.1bn from £320m on-year as net rental income fell 10.1% to £478m.
Retail like-for-like net rental declined 5.1% in the year, primarily reflecting 'the impact of CVAs and administrations,' the company said.
'The offices portfolio saw like-for-like growth of 0.8% which is lower than the historic run-rate due to lease expiries,' it added.
Looking ahead, the company said that in the near term, it was expecting the offices market to be more cautious.
In retail, given current valuations and the lack of liquidity in the investment market, the company's focus was on delivering value though asset management, working to keep its places full and exploiting demand for assets which supported an online offer.
'Our financial position is robust with debt low, significant covenant headroom and access to £1.3bn of undrawn facilities and cash so we are well placed to weather today's challenges and succeed in the long term,' British Land said.