Apartment blocks are pictured in Beijing, China, December 16, 2017. Picture taken December 16, 2017. Portal/Jason Lee/File Photo Acquire License Rights
SHANGHAI, Oct 1 (Portal) – New home prices in China rose slightly in September, breaking a four-month decline, data showed on Sunday, as developers accelerated construction to take advantage of a range of new support measures.
Prices rose an average of 0.05% month-on-month after falling since May, according to a survey by China Index Academy, a real estate research firm. Only 30 of the 100 cities surveyed reported a decline in prices for new construction properties.
The biggest monthly increase since October 2021 was due to developers launching new, higher-quality residential projects, the company said in a report.
Confidence in the real estate sector, which accounts for a quarter of economic activity, has weakened since 2021 when Beijing cracked down on developers piling up debt, triggering a debt crisis. Worsening problems in the sector this year have ravaged the world’s second-largest economy and rattled global financial markets.
China has announced a series of measures in recent weeks to boost home-buying sentiment, including easing some lending rules and easing home-buying restrictions in some cities.
These measures have helped major cities like Beijing see a small increase in new home sales, but some fear the improvement could be short-lived and demand could potentially dry up in smaller cities.
If these measures are further optimized, the report said, the market in top-tier cities is expected to stabilize this quarter, while the recovery in smaller cities may take longer.
China Evergrande Group (3333.HK), the world’s most indebted real estate developer with liabilities of more than $300 billion, said on Thursday that its founder was under investigation for alleged crimes.
Reporting by Brenda Goh and Liangping Gao; Edited by William Mallard
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