Taylor Wimpey market value drops 90% in two years

Taylor Wimpey bosses and shareholders may be reflecting wistfully on life before the merger of George Wimpey and Taylor Woodrow last year.

Before the two firms joined forces to create the UK's largest housebuilder, they had a combined market value of over £5bn in 2006.

Today, Taylor Wimpey is worth barely one tenth of that figure: £550m.

Profits for the two firms in 2006 were £776m in total; yesterday Taylor Wimpey reported a £1.5bn loss for the first half of 2008.

Home completions have also plummeted: from a combined 31,000 in 2006, to just 8,500 so far this year.