China property will decelerate in 2019

In 2019, China's massive property market is anticipated to speed down further, with smaller price leaps as well as diving home sales contributing to pressure on the world's number two economy, according to a Reuters survey.

Smaller cities that have faced steeper price gains in 2018 might face greater risks of a dive as economic activity speeds down and financing conditions are still tough for smaller developers.

China's average residential property prices are anticipated to head north by 2% in the first half of next year from 2018, and just 0.5% for the whole year, a poll with 16 experts revealed on Monday.

It would mark the weakest annual surge for five years in a sector, which traditionally has been one of the country's key surge drivers as well as store of household prosperity.

Market experts have downgraded their forecasts since the last Reuters survey was carried out in September, when prices were anticipated to inch up by up to 3.3% in the first six months of next year.

Housing sales are anticipated to tumble by 5% next year, with property investment decelerating to 4%.

The Chinese real estate market directly affects more than 40 industries and also highly correlates to domestic demand from washing machines to steel.

Notwithstanding gradually decelerating from its maximum levels in mid-2016 as the government sought to cool price leaps, the sector has remained quite buoyant because of firm underlying demand for housing as well as few alternatives for investment.

October data disclosed that new home prices managed to ascend by up to 8.6% in contrast with 2017, which appears to be the fastest tempo since July last year.

By the way, recent price gains have been mostly powered by smaller cities, which have fewer restrictions on home purchasers than megacities.

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