China October property investment slows further, sales cool

A man walks past a wall at a construction site for a new residential compound at the Binhai new district in Tianjin, China, October 18, 2015. With prices of new homes rising by about 10 percent since the August chemical blast to meet an increase in demand, finding new homes outside the disaster area for most of those affected is a costly - and frustrating - process. Picture taken October 18, 2015. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

BEIJING: Annual growth in real estate investment in China slowed further in October while sales cooled slightly, pointing to persistent weakness in the property market that could continue to drag on the broader economy.

Property investment, a crucial growth driver, grew 2.0 percent in the first 10 months from a year earlier, down from an annual rise of 2.6 percent in the January to September period, the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS) said on Wednesday.

That was the slowest rate since early 2009.

New construction fell 13.9 percent during January to October period from a year earlier, worsening from a 12.6 percent annual drop in the first nine months, the NBS data showed.

"The property market continues to adjust," Li Jiaoa senior NBS statistician said in a statement accompanying the data.

Following a year-long slump, home sales and prices have increased in bigger cities over recent months, helped by a barrage of government measures aimed at reviving the key sector and arresting an economic slowdown.

Still, analysts do not expect a full-scale turnaround in the housing market any time soon, as a huge overhang of unsold homes discourages new construction and investment.

With previous policy effects fading away, housing demand started to return to normal levels.

The floor area of property sold grew 7.2 percent during the January-October period, down slightly from growth of 7.5 percent in January to September, according to the NBS data.

A report from REICO, a research institute sponsored by developers, said on Monday that with housing demand cooling after being driven higher by earlier policy easing, growth in property investment will continue to slow in the fourth quarter.

China's President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday that China needed to reduce property inventories to ensure sustainable development of its property market.

Regulators cut downpayment requirements again in September for first-time home buyers as they look to reduce the property market's drag on the broader economy. - Reuters