Savills to see change at top as annual result jumps

Property adviser Savills has upped its full-year expectations after a stronger-than-expected finish to 2017 while revealing that its chief executive will retire.

The group said yesterday that its global performance outstripped forecasts late last year, and enjoyed “substantial commercial transaction volumes” in both the UK and a number of Asian and European markets. It is now pencilling in annual results ahead of previous hopes.

Meanwhile, the firm announced that Jeremy Helsby will retire as chief executive at the end of 2018 after a 39-year career at Savills, 11 of them in the top job. He will be succeeded by Mark Ridley, who is currently in charge of Savills UK and Europe.