China in no hurry to launch property tax, says official

BEIJING: China has no plans to introduce a property tax any time soon, a senior official with the State Administration of Taxation said on Jan 28, aiming to clear market uncertainties as the country seeks to reduce risks of a real estate bubble.

Domestic media have reported in recent weeks that China could soon levy a property tax in some cities, since Beijing started to curb excessive housing price rises in December out of fears the sector was overheating.

"On the property tax issue, we are currently still at the stage of research and preparations," Yang Suizhou, deputy director of the property tax division, told an online chat with Chinese taxpayers, posted on the administration's website (www.chinatax.gov.cn)

China's urban property prices rose 7.8% in December from a year ago, the fastest pace in 2009.

The Chinese government has sought to prevent a real estate bubble forming in the world's third-largest economy, taking a combination of measures including verbal suasion, increasing affordable housing and credit tightening steps, such as raising lenders' reserve requirement ratio. – Reuters