China's building materials sector remains weak

China's building materials sector continued to be depressed as the recovery of the property market fails to materialize, latest statistics from the country's top economic planner suggested.

Cement output fell 4.6 percent year on year to 1.9 billion tonnes in the first 10 months, in contrast to the 2.5-percent gain seen during the same period last year, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on its website.

Output of flat glass dropped 8.3 percent, compared with the 3.5-percent rise in the same period last year.

The data came as the property sector, a major consumer of cement and flat glass, is suffering a nationwide oversupply, especially in third-tier cities.

Housing investment dropped 2.4 percent in October, indicating less housing construction, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The unsold home inventory hit a record of 686.3 million square meters at the end of October, up 17.8 percent from the previous year.

Analysts predict it will take several years before existing homes find buyers. Endi