China’s home prices saw a slight dip in February as the Spring Festival holiday slowed market activity, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday.
In the 70 large and medium-sized cities surveyed, prices of new commercial homes edged down, reflecting the traditional sales off-season during the festive period.
First-tier cities—Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen—bucked the trend with a marginal 0.1 percent increase in new home prices from the previous month. This suggests sustained demand in the Chinese mainland’s most developed urban centers.
Meanwhile, second-tier cities experienced a steady market, with new home prices remaining flat compared to January. However, prices of resold homes in these cities dipped by 0.4 percent, indicating a softer secondary market.
The NBS data also revealed that investment in property development across the Chinese mainland decreased by 9.8 percent year-on-year in the first two months of 2023. This decline narrowed by 0.8 percentage points compared to the entire year of 2022, hinting at a potential stabilization in the property investment sector.
Analysts attribute the overall price dip to seasonal factors and anticipate a rebound as market activities resume post-holiday. The government’s ongoing efforts to stabilize the property market might also influence future trends.
