China home prices fall again in August after state support measures for real estate
Macro
China's National Bureau of Statistics reported that new home prices in 70 Chinese cities fell 0.17% in August, extending a 0.18% decline in July. Second-hand home prices fell 0.31%, worse than the 0.29% drop in July. The data is the latest sign of a downturn in China's real estate sector that has now dragged on for five years and is weighing on domestic demand, prompting policymakers to announce new measures in late August to shore up the market. Those measures include a plan to push property developers to sell completed projects instead of pre-selling homes, support for fundraising through share sales and bond issuance, and allowing homebuyers to take up to 40 years to repay mortgages, up from a previous maximum of 30 years.
