Cooling measures start to kick in

Average home prices in the mainland's 10 major cities grew by a sedate 0.41 per cent last month, indicating Beijing's cooling measures are starting to take effect. Data from the China Real Estate Index System shows that the average price in Wuhan, Chengdu, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou, Tianjin and Nanjing was 15,407 yuan (HK$17,970) per square metre compared with 15,345 yuan per square metre a month earlier. The slowdown was particularly obvious in Guangzhou, where average prices were up just 0.63 per cent last month, versus a 2.31 per cent growth in October.