China’s real estate investments in January-April decreased by 9.8% y/y

In January-April 2024, total real estate investment in China fell by 9.8% year-on-year – to more than RMB 3 trillion ($0.44 trillion). This is reported by SteelOrbis with reference to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In the first four months of 2024, the total area of new commercial real estate sold in the country amounted to 292.5 million square meters, which is 20.2% less than y/y. The total area covered by construction activity decreased by 10.8% year-on-year.

Last week, sentiment in the Chinese real estate market improved. Vice President of the People’s Bank of China Tao Ling said that the regulator will provide cheap loans to 21 local banking institutions to purchase completed but unsold commercial buildings at reasonable prices. This is a step in support of the affordable housing program. No details on the scope and timing of this initiative were announced, but a number of market sources describe this event as a «game changer.»

In addition, the regulator intends to inject 300 billion yuan ($41.5 billion) to support affordable housing, including lowering mortgage interest rates and down payment requirements.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in the first quarter of 2024, China’s real estate investment decreased by 9.5% compared to the first quarter of 2023 – to 2.2 trillion yuan ($0.31 trillion). The total area of construction work in the country in the period decreased by 11.1% year-on-year, and the area of new commercial real estate sold – by 19.4% y/y – to 226.7 million square meters.