LONDON-ING UK Real Estate Income Trust Ltd. recently reportedits financial status from the first half, including that the firmincreased net asset value to $258 million, as opposed to $206million in the first half of 2009. The company credits this successin part to the acquisition of the 33-property Rugby REIT portfolio,mostly properties in greater London and the South East market, for$48 million.

The company has already sold three of the Rugby properties for$2.2 million, and plans to sell more of the sites. “The acquisitionhas provided the company with exposure to a number of qualityassets,” said Nicholas Thompson, chairman, in a statement.

As for economic pressures, Thompson says he believes the strongrebound in property values was short term and has largely run itscourse. “We believe a further improvement in the underlyingeconomic position within the UK is required to improve occupierdemand and rental growth. There are however signs of stability interms of rental levels in some markets, but this is not yetwidespread or consistent across the UK. Wider economic issuesremain at the forefront, with the degree of impact of the‘austerity budget’ not yet clear,” he said.