Hammerson delays new schemes till end of 2009

Developer Hammerson has announced it is freezing all major new projects until the end of 2009.

In an interim statement released today, Hammerson said that the economic downturn is affecting its business and it does not expect demand for retail and office space to recover until the end of next year.

Chairman John Nelson said: "The unprecedented conditions in financial markets worldwide have had a major impact on real estate markets leading to caution on the part of occupiers and a sharp decline in investment activity.

"These challenging conditions are likely to persist for some time. Nevertheless, I believe that Hammerson's strengths and its experienced management team mean that the group is in a good position to weather the current environment and benefit when conditions in real estate markets improve."

Hammerson is projected to spend around £200m on construction in 2008.