House prices dominate UK

The UK economy has been driven by strong housing prices that have kept the consumer spending. However, consumer spending is expected to slow either through government intervention, a fall in the housing market or the weakening equity markets. Steve Clayton, UK equity fund manager at Dresdner RCM, says so far this year the economy has performed better than expected. This has been because consumer spending has remained buoyant because of the strong housing market. However, going forward the UK economy is at a crossroads because of weakness in equity markets, says Clayton. Tony Dolph...