British high-end homebuilder Berkeley on Friday joined its sector peers in underscoring the difficult trading conditions in the housing market, as high mortgage costs and weak macroeconomic backdrop continue to drive buyers away.

The FTSE 100 builder posted an about 5% rise in pre-tax profit at 298 million pounds ($374.8 million) for the six months ended Oct. 31. ($1 = 0.7951 pounds) (Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru and Suban Abdulla in London; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Rashmi Aich)