The average price of pre-construction homes inside Beijing's 4th Ring Road now stands at a staggering 20,515 yuan (US$3,004.6) per square meter, according to a report by the Beijing Youth Daily Tuesday citing the Beijing Bureau of Statistics.

The figures reveal that 19.95 million square meters of commercial homes were sold from January to November this year, up 110-percent year-on-year. The number of apartments sold between January and November is 141,000, surpassing last year's figure of 94,000.

The price of second-hand residential apartments also reached a new high with a one percent increase on the price index compared with the same period last year, the report said.

The roaring housing price is partly due to the preferential policy following the drive to reverse the slump in the domestic market last year.

(chinadaily.com.cn December 17, 2009)