New home prices in China rose slightly in May from a month earlier, data showed on Wednesday, even as the property sector has been faltering for a year and weakened further in recent months.
Data from 100 cities indicated that overall home prices rose 0.03%, compared with a 0.02% gain in April, according to survey data from China Index Academy, one of the country’s largest independent real estate research firms.
In May, more than 60 cities including some provincial capitals eased policies to bolster the sector, but most of the measures focused on boosting home purchase demand via cuts in mortgage rates, smaller down-payments and subsidies.
Officials in the northern city of Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi province, said on May 23 that it will offer deed tax subsidies and called for banks to provide smaller down-payment options for first home buyers.
Local governments are likely to accelerate their easing steps in June, with tier-two cities expected to relax home purchase restrictions for households with more than one child, China Index Academy said.
Among 100 cities surveyed by the academy, 40 cities reported growth in new home prices on a monthly basis.
New home prices in Shanghai dropped 0.01% from a month earlier, compared with no change in April. The commercial hub lifted its Covid-19 lockdown on Wednesday, after two months of bitter isolation.
- Reuters, with additional editing by George Russell
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