Economic Indicators

Chinese house prices fall in April as economic rebound slows

2023.05.16 23:50


© Reuters.

Investing.com– Chinese house prices edged lower in April, data showed on Wednesday, as the country’s property sector remained under pressure from sluggish investment and as a broader economic rebound stalled.

fell 0.2% in April from the prior year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed. While the decline was at its slowest pace in a year, it still marked an 11th consecutive month that house prices have retreated.

The data comes just a day after the NBS warned that public and private investment in the real estate sector remained sluggish. Investment in the space fell 6.2% in the year to April, deeper than a 5.8% drop seen in March.

The Chinese property sector, which accounts for a quarter of the country’s GDP, has been under pressure for the past three years as disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and stricter laws on fundraising triggered a widespread cash crunch.

This also saw the unwinding of a major house price bubble in the country, which in turn burned retail investors and sparked increased scrutiny towards the space.

While the government has rolled out a slew of stimulus measures to encourage investment in the space, private investors have remained wary of the property market so far this year. 

The withdrawal of anti-COVID measures at the beginning of the year also did little to spur investment into the property market.

A post-COVID rebound in China’s economy now appears to be running out of steam, as suggested by a barrage of weaker-than-expected economic readings for April. This has caused some unwinding in bets for a strong economic recovery in the country this year.

Still, the government is now expected to further increase liquidity conditions in the country to spur economic growth. 

The fell 0.2% after Wednesday’s reading, and was within spitting distance of the key 7 level.

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