One of the biggest property owners in London's tourist heartland said today that it was still seeing strong demand from restaurants and shops for its units.

Shaftesbury, which owns property mainly around Carnaby Street, Covent Garden and China Town, raised its dividend and said it was confident of its outlook, even as it posted a 25 per cent drop in adjusted net asset value.

The West End landlord, which owns more than 400 properties, reported full year results to the end of September, and said that its portfolio had fallen in value by more than 15 per cent over the year, compared with a 22.6 per cent fall in the main IPD monthly index.

The worst performer on its estate was Carnaby which was down 17 per cent, while Chinatown, down just 11 per cent, proved the most resilient.

“The economy in the West End and our portfolio, with its defensive qualities of prime locations and mixed uses, have proved to be resilient,” John Manser, the chairman, said.

Mr Manser said that rental income continued to grow despite the continuing gloom in the UK real estate market. He also added that Shaftesbury was securely financed and was eying the current market conditions as a buying opportunity.

"For a securely financed group such as ours, this represents a fine opportunity to use our deep knowledge of the West End market to add to our portfolio. Although it is impossible to say how long this economic downturn will prevail, we remain confident that when the gloom lifts, Shaftesbury will emerge strongly positioned to benefit,” Mr Manser said.

Shaftesbury has raised its total dividend for the year to 11p, up 44 per cent. Pre-tax profits rose 20 per cent to £15.3 million.

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