Potential homebuyers visit a housing expo in Zhengzhou, Henan province. (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
China's housing market continued to warm in January, with more than half of surveyed major cities reporting month-on-month rises in new home prices.
Of 70 large- and medium-sized cities surveyed in January, new home prices climbed month on month in 38, compared with 39 the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Friday.
Meanwhile, 24 reported month-on-month declines, down from 27 in December, according to NBS data.
On a yearly basis, 25 cities posted new-home price increases and 45 reported falls, compared with 21 and 49 in December.
New-home prices soared 52.7 percent year on year in the southern city of Shenzhen, the sharpest increase last month among al the major cities, followed by Shanghai and Beijing, where prices surged 21.4 percent and 11.3 percent year on year. Another southern city, Zhanjiang in Guangdong Province, registered the steepest price decline, with a 4.9 percent annual fall.
Prices for existing homes also warmed up last month, with 37 cities reporting higher month-on-month prices and 25 reporting lower prices.
China's property market started to recover in the second half of 2015 after cooling for more than a year, boosted by the government's support measures, including interest rate cuts and lower deposit requirements.
Last week, taxes on some property transactions were slashed and further reductions to the minimum downpayments for first- and second-time home buyers was announced earlier this month.
Analysts expect more support measures to be unveiled this year as the country tries to bolster the property sector.
