Property firms in China reap July sales jump

Hong Kong

CHINA'S big property developers saw sales jump in July, as realtors said that some investors sought refuge from the mainland's US$4 trillion stock market rout by pulling their money out of shares and putting it into bricks and mortar.

As the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourse indices slid 14 per cent in July, extending a June valuation slide triggered by economic jitters, monthly sales at 18 firms surveyed by Reuters showed double-digit percentage gains in price and volume compared with a year ago.