Hong Kong banks slash property valuations

Weakening market: Tourists taking photos on Victoria Peak with a view showing residential and commercial buildings in Hong Kong. rising interest rates threaten to drag down property prices that have been on a bull run for most of the past 15 years. — AFP

HONG KONG: Banks in Hong Kong are aggressively cutting property valuations as the city’s housing market weakens, threatening to fuel a downward spiral in prices, according to brokerage CLSA Ltd.

“The banks’ assessment is often a self-fulfilling prophecy, as lower valuations will mean less lending,” analysts led by Nicole Wong wrote in a note yesterday.