China house prices rise in Dec, first year-on-year increase in 9 months
Purchase this article for republication
Buy SPH photos
This photo taken on Oct 26, 2012 shows a worker at the construction site for a luxury property development in the suburbs of Shanghai. -- PHOTO: AFP
BEIJING (AFP) - China's home prices recorded their first year-on-year increase in nine months in December, an independent survey showed on Friday, but it said a huge rebound nationally was unlikely.
The cost of a new home in 100 major cities averaged 9,715 yuan (S$1,926) per square metre last month, up a marginal 0.03 per cent from December 2011, the China Index Academy (CIA) said.
Prices rose 0.23 per cent from November, the seventh consecutive monthly rise, it said in a statement.
Property costs are a key social issue in China, where millions of would-be buyers have been priced out of the market, fuelling resentment.
