We've heard a lot in the past few days about how a speculative bubble is inflating in the mainland property market.
Among the worried is the mayor of Shanghai. On Wednesday, he complained that home prices in the city are rising too fast and called on the government to cool the market.
The turnaround from bust to boom has been remarkably quick. Just a few months ago, the market was dead in the water. In many cities, prices were down by 20 per cent or more from their peak, sales volumes had cratered and developers were teetering on the brink of financial collapse.
Then the authorities came to the rescue and opened the credit taps. Suddenly, developers had access to cheap bank loans again, and buyers were able to get mortgages once more.
In the big cities, sales volumes promptly doubled and prices began to pick up.
Now analysts at UBS are forecasting that residential prices will climb 20 per cent this year. Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's has lifted its negative outlook on the property development sector, citing improved operating conditions.