China home prices rise 0.2% in August from July

[BEIJING] Average new home prices in China's 70 major cities rose 0.2 per cent in August from a month ago, slowing from an 0.4 per cent gain in July, as policymakers battle to rein in an overheated market.

New home prices rose 8.3 per cent in August versus a year ago, slowing from a 9.7 per cent increase in July, Reuters calculated from National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data out on Monday.

China's almost two-year-long property boom hit fever pitch last August when prices jumped 1.5 per cent in a month.

While regulators have intensified their crackdown on property speculation in more than 45 major cities, the buying frenzy came to smaller centres this year as local governments offered cheap credit and imposed few restrictions in the hope of clearing a housing glut.

But many analysts still expect the sector to gradually lose momentum over the rest of the year in the face of continuous policy tightening and an official financial deleveraging campaign.

REUTERS