China's new home price growth slows as speculative curbs bite

Reuters reports that data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that China’s new home prices rose at the slowest clip in six months in July, as authorities further tightened rules in the property sector.

Average new home prices in China’s 70 major cities rose 0.3% in July from a month earlier, slowing from a 0.5% gain in June.

Separate data showed property investment also rose at a slower pace in January-July from a year earlier, amid tightened financing rules.

China’s property market rebounded quickly from the COVID-19 crisis last year, triggering concerns about financial risks in an overheated market.

That has prompted authorities to step up curbs this year, including restrictions on borrowing by developers, caps on banks’ lending to the sector, guiding banks to raise mortgage rates and a crackdown on illegal funding in the market.

Price growth in China’s biggest cities such as Shanghai and Beijing eased in July to 0.4% from June’s 0.7% growth, the NBS said.

In Beijing, which has China’s most stringent property curbs, residents are not allowed to buy additional homes after owning two properties.

Prices in smaller tier-three cities rose 0.2% on-month, versus a 0.3% gain in June. Tier-two cities, which include some provincial capitals, gained 0.4%, slowing from June’s 0.5% rise.