China Home Prices in December Rebound Slightly

Home prices in China in December rebounded slightly from the month before due to strength in smaller cities.

The average price of new homes in 70 cities rose 0.5% in December from November, excluding government-subsidized housing, according to calculations from The Wall Street Journal based on data released Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics. That compared with a 0.4% on-month gain in November.

Compared with the same period a year earlier, average new home prices increased 5.8% in December, compared with a 5.5% increase in November.

Beijing has been trying to manage a gradual property market slowdown by imposing stricter property controls in megacities and allowing fewer restrictions in outlying areas.

Compared with the same period a year ago, prices fell 0.2% in Beijing and 3% in Shenzhen. They rose 0.2% in Shanghai and 5.5% in Guangzhou.

Inland cities led month-over-month gains, including Kunming, up 2.6%, Luzhou, up 2%, and Dali, up 1.5%. Prices in Haikou, the capital of China's island province Hainan, were up 2.2%.

New home prices rose in 57 of 70 cities in December from a month earlier, compared with 50 in November. Prices of new homes increased in 61 of 70 cities in December from a year earlier, compared with 59 in November.

-- Write to Dominique Fong at dominique.fong@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 17, 2018 21:20 ET (02:20 GMT)