China new home prices rise 12.4% y-o-y in December

[BEIJING] Average new home prices in China's 70 major cities rose 12.4 per cent in December from a year earlier, slowing slightly from a 12.6 per cent increase in November, an official survey showed on Wednesday.

Compared with a month earlier, home prices rose 0.3 per cent nationwide, slowing from November's 0.6 per cent, according to Reuters calculations from data issued by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing prices rose 23.5 per cent, 26.5 per cent and 25.9 per cent, respectively, from a year earlier.

Monthly growth in Shanghai and Shenzhen slowed but was unchanged in Beijing as local governments' tightening measures took effect.

China relied heavily on a surging real estate market and government stimulus to help drive economic growth in 2016, but policymakers have grown concerned that the property frenzy will fuel price bubbles and risk a market crash, with serious consequences for the broader economy.

Soaring home prices have prompted more than 20 Chinese cities to tighten lending requirements on house purchases, while regulators have told banks to strengthen their risk management on property loans.

REUTERS