Gradual recovery in China's property market as Covid-19 restrictions ease

KUALA LUMPUR (May 18): China is seeing “signs of gradual recovery in the property market” as Beijing eases Covid-19 “restrictions on movement”, Reuters reported today.

The news wire “calculated based on data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS)” that average new home prices in “70 major cities rose 0.5% in April from the prior month”, “a pace not seen since October”.

The report also stated that sales are “recovering quickly” as developers are now allowed to reopen showrooms and property agents go back to conducting viewings.

“Pent-up housing demand is being further released in April as the economy and life continue to get back on track,” an NBS official said.

The central government “has so far refrained from substantial easing in property policies” but it was also reported that local authorities have relaxed purchase restrictions with measures to “help soothe developers’ financial strain”.

The Reuters report also stated that the bulk of the “70 cities surveyed by the NBS reported monthly price increases for new homes, with the number rising to 50 from 38 in March”.

NBS also said that “robust” gains were seen in “all city tiers” with “top performers” being Nanjing and Tangshan, with both “notching up monthly price increases of 1.8%”.

But prices were still lower in Wuhan city – “the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak”, said NBS.

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