Housing prices continued to soar in China's major cities in the
fourth quarter, official figures released on Thursday show.
The average housing price in China's 70 large- and medium-sized
cities climbed 10.2 percent in the fourth quarter from the same
period of 2006, two percentage points higher than in the third
quarter, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said
in a statement.
Experts said the figures were not surprising as the growth rates
in November and December had both reached 10.5 percent year on
year, the largest monthly gain since July 2005.
Houses have been getting more expensive despite government
efforts to curb real estate investment and shelter low-income
families.
Prices of new apartments jumped 11.4 percent, up 2.4 percentage
points from the third quarter, while second-hand units went up 9.8
percent, an increase of 2.2 percentage points.
Rents rose 3.1 percent, while the growth of land transaction
prices slowed from the third quarter by 4.3 percentage points to
stand at 10.7 percent.
Housing prices in major Chinese cities increased 5.6 percent
year on year in the first quarter, 6.3 percent in the second
quarter and 8.2 percent in the third, according to the National
Bureau of Statistics.
(Xinhua News Agency February 1, 2008)
