China Home Prices in Oct Rise On-Month in 50 of 70 Cities Vs. 44 in Sept

The growth of home prices in China held about steady month-over-month while government property controls continued to suppress home-buying.

The average price of new homes in 70 cities rose 0.3% in October from September, excluding government-subsidized housing, according to calculations from The Wall Street Journal based on data released Saturday by the National Bureau of Statistics. That compared with a 0.2% on-month gain in September.

Government restrictions such as price caps on developers' new-home projects softened growth.

Compared with the same period a year earlier, average new home prices increased 5.7% in October after a 6.5% increase in September.

Among China's biggest cities, prices fell 0.1% in Shenzhen, 0.2% in Beijing and 0.2% in Guangzhou from a month earlier. Prices rose 0.3% in Shanghai for the same period.

Month over month, the fastest growth of 70 cities was in Harbin, a city in China's frigid north, where prices increased 1.7% in October.

New home prices rose in 50 of 70 cities in October from a month earlier, compared with 44 cities in September. Prices of new homes rose in 59 of 70 cities in October from a year earlier, compared with 67 in September.

--Dominique Fong

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 17, 2017 21:16 ET (02:16 GMT)