Rise in China prices eases in Nov

[BEIJING] China's property inflation eased slightly in November, two private surveys showed, offering initial signs that recent measures imposed by some local authorities could help cool a red-hot real estate sector.

Prices of new homes in 288 major cities in November rose 0.77 per cent from the previous month, easing from a monthly rise of 0.83 per cent in October, according to a poll released on Sunday by E-House China, a real estate services firm.

House prices climbed 10.1 per cent year on year, also slowing slightly from October's annual rise of 10.5 per cent. A separate survey by China Real Estate Index System (CREIS) showed average prices in the 100 biggest cities rose 0.68 per cent in November from October, marking the weakest monthly gain so far this year. "In terms of property policies, the central government is shifting away from the one-size-for-all solution and we can see more and more cities have launched tailor-made measures to curb home prices," CREIS, a consultancy linked to China's largest online property information firm Soufun Holdings, said in a statement. "These measures help quench bullish sentiment in the market," the statement said.