The international property event MIPIM has been postponed in light of the growing threat of the coronavirus outbreak.

The RICS had already pulled out, as had Knight Frank.

The event, organised by publishers Reed, had been scheduled to take place in Cannes between March 10 and 13. It is now due to take place between June 2 and June 5.

Chief executive Paul Zilk said: “The well-being of our clients and staff is our priority. Given the evolving context, the best course of action is to postpone MIPIM to June.”

He added: “This is not a decision we have taken lightly. We believe these new dates will provide the international MIPIM community with the opportunity to achieve their business objectives.

“We are grateful to our clients for their support and constructive input during this challenging period, and we look forward to talking with them in the coming days about MIPIM in June.”

The decision to postpone the event came just 24 hours after the organisers emailed participants to say it would be going ahead.

Meanwhile the coronavirus threat has wiped billions off the shares, amid fears for various sectors including property – although not hit anywhere near as badly as travel.

The international stock market losses are being compared with the 2008 crash.

Belvoir was among those hit last week, down over 8% on Friday, ending the week at 136p.

The price was down from a high of 183p on February 21.

The shares were subject to price monitoring extensions on the London Stock Exchange.

Competitor The Property Franchise Group’s shares also suffered a big drop on Friday, down almost 10% to finish at 194p after trading at 251p a week beforehand.

Purplebricks shares also dropped, down almost 4% on Friday – although the slide was minor compared with some stock. However, the shares at 89.5p, were well down from about 107p just a few days previously. Purplebricks’ shares have also been subject to price monitoring extensions.

Lucy Pendleton, of James Pendleton estate agents in London, said the coronavirus outbreak could hit buyer sentiment.

She said: “Until a week ago, this year still looked like it was going to be a turning point after a decade of weak sales, but coronavirus has thrown all that into doubt.

“If the frightening headlines continue into March, it’s inevitable that this crisis will have some effect on buyers’ attitudes as they watch the value of their other assets shrink. The extent of this will only become clear in a month’s time.”

Nationwide chief economist Robert Gardner also warned that the coronavirus outbreak could weigh on the housing market over the next quarters, and north London estate agent said his firm had already noticed enquiry levels dropping off over the last week or os.