Housing sales surge 54% in the first week of March

Potential homebuyers visit a housing expo in Zhengzhou, Henan province. China will stabilize property market with tailored, market-based policies to guide 'stable and healthy development', Premier Li's Government Work Report said on March 5, 2015. (Photo/Provided to China Daily)

Housing sales nationwide recorded a surge in the first week of March compared with the previous week, with transactions up 53.6 percent to 37,690 apartments, according to data from Centaline Property Agency Ltd.

The uptick could strengthen a property market recovery that began in the fourth quarter.

The China Index Academy said that among the 40 cities it mainly tracked, property sales by floor areas have been rising at 51.6 percent month-on-month.

"Some cities are expected to see booming property sales by the second half of March. Despite the transactions are lower than the pre-spring festival period. The market is likely to be stimulated after the latest interest rate cut," said Zhang Dawei, chief analyst at Centaline. "Home buyers are more confident with the confirmed favorable property policies, especially in the cities with strong market fundamentals."