BEIJING (Reuters) – New home prices in China rose at a slightly faster monthly pace in August, as consumer demand showed signs of picking up in a boost to an economy recovering from the coronavirus crisis.
Average new home prices in 70 major cities climbed 0.6% in August from a month earlier, a touch better than a 0.5% increase in July, according to Reuters calculations based on data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday.
On an annual basis, home prices rose 4.8% in August, matching July’s pace.
The property market has been a major driver in China’s economic recovery, with home sales and investment growing at a robust pace in recent months after coronavirus lockdowns were lifted.
Yet policymakers remain wary about the risks of overheating, long one of the key balancing acts for authorities as they try to support a crucial sector of the economy without stoking excessive speculation.
Since July, many major cities have imposed new restrictions on property transactions to arrest sharp price rises. Big provincial capitals Hangzhou and Shenyang also strengthened curbs on home purchases this month..
Most of the 70 cities surveyed by the NBS reported monthly price increases for new homes, with the number unchanged from 59 in July.
Tier-3 cities reported the strongest monthly gains. Huizhou, a small city in China southern Guangdong province which is close to Shenzhen, was the top performer in August, notching up a monthly price increase of 1.9%.
Regulators said last month they would institute new rules to control liquidity in the real estate market and are looking to contain property developers’ debt levels to reduce risks to the financial system.
That has prompted indebted developers to cut prices to spur sales and cashflow. Analysts expect more developers would initiate sales promotion in the coming months, dubbed “Golden September, Silver October”, a traditional sales peak season.
“Going forward, price cuts and sales promotion would be the main theme,” said Yan Yuejin, director of the Shanghai-based E-house China Research and Development Institution.
“We do not rule out possibility that the home price increase will continue to narrow.”
(Reporting by Lusha Zhang, Roxanne Liu and Ryan Woo; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
TORONTO – Strength in the base metal and technology sectors helped Canada’s main stock index gain almost 100 points on Friday, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 93.51 points at 23,568.65.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 297.01 points at 41,393.78. The S&P 500 index was up 30.26 points at 5,626.02, while the Nasdaq composite was up 114.30 points at 17,683.98.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.61 cents US compared with 73.58 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down 32 cents at US$68.65 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$30.10 at US$2,610.70 an ounce and the December copper contract was up four cents US$4.24 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says wholesale sales, excluding petroleum, petroleum products, and other hydrocarbons and excluding oilseed and grain, rose 0.4 per cent to $82.7 billion in July.
The increase came as sales in the miscellaneous subsector gained three per cent to reach $10.5 billion in July, helped by strength in the agriculture supplies industry group, which rose 9.2 per cent.
The food, beverage and tobacco subsector added 1.7 per cent to total $15 billion in July.
The personal and household goods subsector fell 2.5 per cent to $12.1 billion.
In volume terms, overall wholesale sales rose 0.5 per cent in July.
Statistics Canada started including oilseed and grain as well as the petroleum and petroleum products subsector as part of wholesale trade last year, but is excluding the data from monthly analysis until there is enough historical data.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in the base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 172.18 points at 23,383.35.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 34.99 points at 40,826.72. The S&P 500 index was up 10.56 points at 5,564.69, while the Nasdaq composite was up 74.84 points at 17,470.37.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.55 cents US compared with 73.59 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up $2.00 at US$69.31 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.32 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$40.00 at US$2,582.40 an ounce and the December copper contract was up six cents at US$4.20 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
