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SCMP Reporter

Government figures yesterday revealed property transactions dropped about 11.4 per cent last month compared with May.

 The decrease is lower than private sector estimates but still suggests the property sector has begun to cool.

 This downturn could be accelerated following last week's pledge by Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa to increase housing supply and crackdown on speculation.

 The downward trend was exacerbated because there were only 22 working days last month, compared with 27 in May, which meant there were fewer days available to register properties.

 According to the Government statistics, the number of sale and purchase agreements for building units - both residential and non-residential - was 17,510.

 Despite the fall, the value of the deals rose by 17.4 per cent to $81.4 billion. During June, the highest number of sales were in the Hong Kong district, reaching 5,120 for about $38.6 billion.

 In Kowloon, transactions totalled 4,440 for about $17 billion, with Yuen Long accounting for 1,733 transactions for just over $6 billion.

 The pick-up in the property market during the past 12 months is reflected in a 58 per cent increase in sales during June compared with the same month last year. The value of these sales was 134 per cent higher.

 Concerns about a downturn in the SAR's property market last week caused stocks to tumble in the Hang Seng Index.

 Brokers said they were deserting property stocks following the uncertainty caused by the Chief Executive's outline of proposed housing policy.

 Mr Tung said he would boost housing supply to 85,000 units a year and increase land supply in a bid to cap spiralling house prices.

 According to Centaline Property Agency, sale and purchase agreements should grow modestly after strong demand at the end of May.

 Centaline estimates accumulated property transactions for the first six months of the year reached a record high of 115,400, compared with the previous best half-year performance of 84,831 in 1991.

 In the primary market, Centaline said transactions plunged 23.5 per cent to 1,826 for properties worth less than $20 million.

  Most of these transactions were at Sun Hung Kai Properties' Parkside Villa in Yuen Long, Maywood Court in Tin Shui Wai, developed by Cheung Kong (Holdings), and Sino Group's Rosedale Garden in Tuen Mun.

 Midland Realty said property transactions in the primary market dropped 28.4 per cent from May.

 The two agencies estimated there were between 13,478 and 14,093 property transactions in the secondary residential market - a fall of between 7.7 per cent and 8.6 per cent from May.

UPS AND DOWNS Fall in transactions blamed on Tung's pledge Value of deals surges 17.4pc to $81.4b 



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Sun Hung Kai Properties

Property sector cools as deals slide 11.4pc but value of transactions lifts