New | Price cuts boost China new home sales

China's widespread price cuts for new homes drove sales 80 per cent higher last month from February in 10 key cities tracked by the SCMP-Creda index.

Analysts expect transaction momentum to gain traction in the next few months as the government relaxes policies to aid the struggling real estate market and boost economic growth.

Prices fell month on month in eight of the 10 cities except Beijing and Chengdu, but all recorded a gain in sales of 25 per cent in Beijing to 144 per cent in Shenzhen.

"Beijing posted a stellar performance with the booming of the mid- to high-end market, pushing up the average price," said Chen Sheng, the dean of the China Real Estate Data Academy, the partner of the for the monthly index.

The capital registered a month-on-month price gain of 9.2 per cent in March, the fastest pace in six months and swinging from a drop of 12.31 per cent in February.

"Since 2014, mid- to high-end projects have performed better than lower-end ones in first-tier cities, while some affordable housing products have become very popular in second or third-tier cities," Chen said.

Prices also inched up 0.27 per cent in Chengdu as buyers turned to projects in downtown districts or suburban homes with better facilities after the Lunar New Year in the middle of February to preserve value.