China's first-tier cities report rise in home prices in May

Home prices in China's first-tier cities, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, increased month on month in May, official data showed on Tuesday.

New home prices in the four first-tier cities edged up 0.2 percent month on month last month, with the pace of growth widening by 0.1 percentage points from April, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Specifically, east China's Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, both in south China, saw new home prices rise 0.2 percent, 0.2 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively, while Beijing reported a 0.2-percent decline.

New home prices in second-tier cities dropped 0.1 percent month on month, unchanged from the previous month, while those in third-tier cities fell 0.4 percent, 0.1 percentage points higher than in April, the NBS noted.

Similar trends were seen in the resale housing market, as revealed by the data. First-tier cities also posted a month-on-month increase in this regard, while second- and third-tier cities reported declines.

The NBS monthly report tracks residential property prices in 70 major Chinese cities, comprising the four first-tier cities, 31 second-tier cities and 35 third-tier cities.

Yang Caifang, an NBS statistician, said 16 of the 70 cities recorded month-on-month increases in the new home market in May, two more than in April. The figure in the resale market was 10, down by two from the previous month.

On a yearly basis, sales prices across all city tiers generally declined in May. However, first-tier cities saw narrower price drops in both new and resale home markets. Declines also narrowed in most other segments, except in the third-tier new home market, where the drop widened slightly.