SHANGHAI (BLOOMBERG) - China's home sales last month grew at the slowest pace in almost three years amid regulatory moves to rein in prices.

The value of new homes sold rose 3.8 per cent to 807 billion yuan (S$166.5 billion) in August from a year earlier, according to Bloomberg calculations based on data released on Thursday (Sept 14) by the National Bureau of Statistics.

That compares with a 4.3 per cent jump a month earlier, and is the slowest increase since November 2014.

China's leaders are determined to cool rising home prices across China, imposing buying restrictions to rein in demand. Curbs in bigger cities have spurred buying in smaller ones, forcing local authorities to reverse policies put in place last year to reduce a glut of unsold homes. Central Shaanxi's provincial capital Xi'an this week unveiled more buying curbs, less than a year after rolling out supportive rules aimed at easing inventory.

Still, investment in real estate development rebounded to a 7.8 per cent growth from a year earlier, up from 4.8 per cent in July, according to Bloomberg calculations.