Housebuilder Persimmon East Anglia has today welcomed the group's half year trading update announcement which has seen a 6pc increase in completions compared to the previous year.

Andrew Fuller, managing director of Persimmon Homes Anglia, said the company had completed 4,712 new homes in the first six months of 2012, compared to 4,439 in the same period of 2011.

'Sales rates have continued to run ahead of 2011 through the spring season, with weekly average private sales rate per site for the first half being about 18pc ahead,' he said.

'As a group, we have opened 65 new sites in the first half of the year and we are currently selling new homes from 375 sites. We anticipate opening a further 60 new sites during the second half of the year, and five across Norfolk and Suffolk in Wymondham, Cringleford, Ipswich, Hoveton and Central Norwich.

'One area in which we have really benefited locally is a substantial increase in visitors to our Persimmon Homes and Charles Church websites, which in turn has led to more traffic coming into our show homes.'

Nationally, turnover for the first half of 2012 would be about 13pc up compared with a year ago at around �805m, Persiommon said.

The trading update was made ahead of Persimmon's half year results to 30 June 2012, which will be released on Tuesday August 21.