House price growth spreads across china

House price growth is spreading across China, according to new figures from the government.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, prices climbed in November 2015 in 33 cities of the 70 monitored by officials, up from 27 in October 2015. Conversely, prices dropped in 27, down from 33 in October, with 10 markets seeing prices unchanged.

The recovering house prices arrives after a year in which stock levels have outpaced demand (the number of unsold homes jumped 12 per cent in November 2015  year-on-year), weighing down property values. Now the Communist Party rulers aim to reduce inventory in 2016, to help redress the balance. Indeed, this year, the government has tried to stimulate demand, cutting interest rates in October 2015 for the sixth time in the last 12 months, which has helped to bring mortgage rates to five-year lows.

The bureau says that its measures have "kept showing effects" on sales in 2015.

"Most of the stimulus so far has been focused on the demand side," Du Jinsong, a Hong Kong-based property analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG, told Bloomberg. "I think the government is thinking about supply-side stimulus at the moment. Demand is not unlimited."

Prices were led by Shenzhen, where prices increased 2.9 per cent, faster than the 1.2 per cent recorded in October. Shanghai followed with a rise of 1.6 per cent.