https://www.scmp.com/rss/322699/feed Zheng Yangpeng is a former business reporter at the Post, covering China property, banking and finance. He previously worked for China Daily, joining the Post in 2016. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism and Communication from Peking University, and a Master's Degree in Global Business Journalism from Tsinghua University. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Chinese developers’ hopes that Beijing would ease property curbs to bolster a slowing economy were dashed as the country’s top decision-making body discussed ways to support domestic demand including boosting consumption and manufacturing investment. The Communist Party’s Politburo, which met on Tuesday to lay out economic policies for the second half, warned against “using property as a tool to stimulate the economy in the short-run”, the first such statement in history. “We should adhere to... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3020797/chinas-politburo-first-time-decides-against-relaxing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3020797/chinas-politburo-first-time-decides-against-relaxing?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 31 Jul 2019 09:00:06 +0000 The latest tightening in funding might drive a fresh round of consolidation among mainland Chinese property developers, with an acceleration in acquisition of land and assets by the biggest players, analysts said. The biggest developers are expected to grow at the expense of smaller rivals, with their performance increasingly deviating from the industry average. “Foreign investors are too bearish about Chinese developers … they see slower sales and heightened government curbs. But what they may... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3020482/chinas-top-property-developers-get-bigger-amid-tightened-funding-mid-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3020482/chinas-top-property-developers-get-bigger-amid-tightened-funding-mid-and?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Jul 2019 00:00:14 +0000 Suzhou, a city near Shanghai of interlocking canals and waterways, has tightened its real estate regulations for the fourth time this year, as the city’s overheating home market defied policies to bring affordability within reach. The local government doubled the tax return period in the city – an eligibility criterion for immigrant buyers of Suzhou’s homes – to two years, and broadened its jurisdiction to the entire city, including the Kunshan and Taicang counties, according to a Wednesday... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3020030/suzhou-tightens-property-curbs-fourth-time-2019-overheating?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3020030/suzhou-tightens-property-curbs-fourth-time-2019-overheating?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Jul 2019 05:21:59 +0000 Sino-Ocean Capital, the investment arm of mainland developer Sino-Ocean Group, is planning a new fund to tap into growing ­demand for warehousing properties amid the continuing rise of ­e-commerce. The company plans to launch a 3 billion to 5 billion yuan (US$436.1 million to US$726.9 million) fund to acquire logistics properties in the second-half, said Lin Chuan, managing director of Sino-Ocean Capital, who oversees its private equity business. “Real estate lies deep in Sino-Ocean’s DNA. One... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3019806/sino-ocean-invest-8-billion-yuan-new-fund-targeting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3019806/sino-ocean-invest-8-billion-yuan-new-fund-targeting?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Jul 2019 23:15:12 +0000 In a first, more companies from the Greater China region have made it to Fortune magazine’s list of the world’s top 500 firms than those from the United States. A total of 129 companies, including 10 from Taiwan, were ranked among the world’s biggest firms by operating revenue in 2019, according to a list released on Monday. Their number rose from 120 last year, while the number for the US declined from 126 last year to 121 this year. “Excluding Taiwan, 119 companies from mainland China and Hong... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-overtakes-us-creating-fortune-500-companies/article/3019735?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-overtakes-us-creating-fortune-500-companies/article/3019735?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Jul 2019 10:09:03 +0000 Chinese builder Future Land Development Holdings is offloading 40 projects, just three weeks after it was engulfed in scandal when its former chairman was detained on suspicion of sexually assaulting a nine-year-old girl. In a statement filed to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday morning, the company said its Shanghai-listed subsidiary Seazen Holdings is in negotiations with partners to sell its stakes in about 40 projects in China. They will be sold at below market rate to various small... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3019688/chinese-builder-future-land-puts-40-projects-sale-after-former?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3019688/chinese-builder-future-land-puts-40-projects-sale-after-former?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Jul 2019 02:45:49 +0000 In a first, more Chinese companies have made it to Fortune magazine’s list of the world’s top 500 firms this year, than from the United States. A total of 129 companies, including 10 from Taiwan, were ranked among the world’s biggest firms by operating revenue, according to a list released on Monday. Their number rose from 120 last year, while the number for the US declined from 126 last year to 121 this year. “Excluding Taiwan, 119 companies from mainland China and Hong Kong made it to the... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3019632/first-china-has-more-companies-fortune-global-500-list-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3019632/first-china-has-more-companies-fortune-global-500-list-us?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Jul 2019 12:25:09 +0000 Chinese buyers pulled away from the US residential market in the past year, as the trade war and tighter capital controls led to a 56 per cent decline in investment – the biggest contraction since at least 2010, according to the US National Association of Realtors. Still, their investment of US$13.4 billion in the 12 months to March 2019 was the largest – 11 per cent – among all foreign buyers for the seventh straight year. But China’s 56 per cent retreat was much sharper than the 36 per cent... https://www.scmp.com/property/international/article/3019150/chinese-investment-us-homes-contracts-most-nearly-10-years?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/international/article/3019150/chinese-investment-us-homes-contracts-most-nearly-10-years?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Jul 2019 08:30:44 +0000 A slew of high-profile defaults in China’s shadow-banking sector has highlighted the acute deterioration of assets in the US$9 trillion market, analysts said. Noah Holdings, one of China’s largest wealth and asset managers, revealed last week that 3.4 billion yuan (US$500 million) of investment in Camsing International is in danger of default, after Camsing’s controller Lo Ching was arrested by police for suspected fraud. In early June, Anxin Trust disclosed that it had missed payments of 11.8... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3018875/high-profile-defaults-highlight-risk-chinas-shadow-banking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3018875/high-profile-defaults-highlight-risk-chinas-shadow-banking?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Jul 2019 23:15:09 +0000 Beijing’s luxury serviced apartments market is set to take a hit from an increase in supply and a drop in demand from expatriates as foreign firms scale back their Chinese operations, according to observers. Foreign businesses, particularly manufacturers, have been losing market share in China under stiff competition from local companies in recent years. Many have moved their production facilities out of the country because of cost concerns, a trend exacerbated by the threat of higher tariffs... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3017718/expat-demand-beijings-luxury-serviced-apartments-falls?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3017718/expat-demand-beijings-luxury-serviced-apartments-falls?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Jul 2019 23:00:16 +0000 The latest scandal from the mainland, this time involving the billionaire chairman of Chinese developer Future Land Development Holdings, has once again brought into focus “key man risk”. Investors are reeling from the shock arrest of Wang Zhenhua, one of China’s richest men and controlling stakeholder of Hong Kong-listed Future Land, for allegedly molesting a nine-year-old girl. It wiped out more than HK$33 billion (US$4.2 billion) from the company’s market cap since the arrest was confirmed by... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3017445/hong-kong-listed-future-land-chairmans-downfall-once-again?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3017445/hong-kong-listed-future-land-chairmans-downfall-once-again?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Jul 2019 10:07:38 +0000 Shares of Future Land Development Holdings Limited, a Shanghai-based property developer, plunged by the most since their 2012 listing in Hong Kong after the company’s founder and chairman Wang Zhenhua was detained by Chinese police over a child molestation charge. The stock plummeted by 23.9 per cent in the last hour of trading in Hong Kong to a five-week low of HK$8.04, wiping out HK$14.86 billion (US$1.9 billion) in market value. Shares of Seazen Holdings, also founded and chaired by Wang,... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3017146/future-lands-shares-make-their-biggest-one-day-plunge-2012-hong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3017146/future-lands-shares-make-their-biggest-one-day-plunge-2012-hong?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Jul 2019 11:21:19 +0000 Chinese developers are increasingly being forced to sell their new units at losses, or close to cost, in order to get buyers into their showrooms and generate cash, amid a clampdown on financing that forms part of the government’s campaign to pare back debt. The huge discounts involved have been drawing hoards of potential buyers, who have in turn shunned more expensive lived-in homes and new units that are charging market rates. Yanlord Riverbay, a project in downtown Chengdu by Singaporean... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3016932/chinese-builders-face-tough-choice-sacrifice-profit-now?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3016932/chinese-builders-face-tough-choice-sacrifice-profit-now?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Jul 2019 08:46:13 +0000 Sales at China’s top 100 developers slowed significantly in the first half, and the outlook for the second half remains weak amid a tightening of home buying restrictions and a funding squeeze on builders in place since May, a report from property consultancy CRIC showed on Monday. Excluding revenue from jointly developed projects, contracted sales at these 100 companies rose 4 per cent year on year to 3.9 trillion yuan (US$570 billion) in the first six months, a sharp drop from the 37.6 per... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3016812/sales-chinas-top-100-developers-slow-down-first-half-property?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3016812/sales-chinas-top-100-developers-slow-down-first-half-property?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Jul 2019 11:15:11 +0000 Soho China, one of the country’s largest commercial developers, is putting 7.8 billion yuan (US$1.13 billion) of office assets up for sale, making its biggest disposal in the company’s two-decade history to raises capital to buy land to expand its land bank. The developer on Friday put 20,000 square metres of office space in five Beijing and Shanghai projects on the market. The move conflicts with a pledge by its chairman Pan Shiyi a year ago not to sell core assets in either of the two mainland... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3016580/soho-china-struggling-flagging-profits-and-stock-price-put-us113?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3016580/soho-china-struggling-flagging-profits-and-stock-price-put-us113?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 28 Jun 2019 15:03:37 +0000 Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group said on Wednesday it had formally signed an operational agreement to develop a high-end hospital in partnership with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Centre in Chengdu, in China’s southwestern Sichuan province. Construction work on the 6 billion yuan (US$870.85 million) project started late last year, and it is part of a framework agreement with the US health care provider for the development of general hospitals in five top-tier Chinese cities.... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3016142/wanda-university-pittsburg-medical-centre-formalise-deal-us870?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3016142/wanda-university-pittsburg-medical-centre-formalise-deal-us870?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Jun 2019 07:34:50 +0000 Rents in China’s top cities, which rise every summer on the back of an influx of fresh college graduates joining the workforce, are unlikely to increase by much this year as they have reached the upper limit of their affordability and received warnings from local governments, market observers say. Average monthly rent in first-tier cities such as Beijing have stayed flat at 90 yuan (US$13) per square metre in the first three weeks of June, little changed from the same period last year, according... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3015958/why-rents-chinas-top-cities-are-unlikely-see-midyear-rise?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3015958/why-rents-chinas-top-cities-are-unlikely-see-midyear-rise?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Jun 2019 23:30:14 +0000 Travel about 20 miles outside the center of Shanghai, and you’ll find yourself in a town that looks more like it belongs in rural England than the suburb of a major Chinese metropolis. Thames Town, named after the river in London, is built in the style of an English village, complete with Victorian terraces, red telephone boxes, and statues of Harry Potter and Winston Churchill. It’s one of many large-scale developments in China with architecture inspired by other countries (the resort town of... https://www.scmp.com/culture/china-wants-people-stop-it-weird-and-foreign-names/article/3016038?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/china-wants-people-stop-it-weird-and-foreign-names/article/3016038?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Jun 2019 11:49:39 +0000 Shenzhen’s government has sold five residential land parcels at record prices, exceeding its minimum bids by 45 per cent, as more than 80 developers from mainland China and Hong Kong jostled for plots in the technology hub at the centre of the Greater Bay Area megaproject. The land plots, with a combined area of 170,273 square metres (1.8 million square feet) – slightly smaller than Victoria Park in Hong Kong - sold for a combined 22.38 billion yuan (US$3.2 billion), a record single-day haul for... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3015769/shenzhens-largest-residential-land-sale-2001-draws?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3015769/shenzhens-largest-residential-land-sale-2001-draws?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Jun 2019 03:15:19 +0000 Hong Kong’s property buyers turned up in droves to snap up new flats on sale at two districts across the city, taking solace from dovish interest rate stances by US and local monetary authorities. Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHK), the city’s largest developer by value, sold 116 units of the 130 flats offered for sale at the second phase of the Mount Regency complex in Tuen Mun, according to agents. Nearby in Yuen Long, New World Development sold 111 of the 128 flats on offer at Atrium House. Both... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3015669/hong-kongs-buyers-turn-droves-snap-discounted-new-homes-prospect-rate-cuts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3015669/hong-kongs-buyers-turn-droves-snap-discounted-new-homes-prospect-rate-cuts?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Jun 2019 11:00:10 +0000 What do soy milk, electric toothbrushes and hair conditioner have in common? They are among the biggest beneficiaries of China’s consumption upgrade, according to global consultancy Bain & Company. The shift in spending by China’s expanding middle class towards more expensive, premium goods has led to a large increase in sales of these and other items, the firm said in a report based on research by Kanta Worldpanel China, which tracks of 40,000 Chinese households’ spending. Soy milk, made from... https://www.scmp.com/business/money/wealth/article/3015379/soy-milk-toothbrushes-and-hair-conditioner-are-biggest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/money/wealth/article/3015379/soy-milk-toothbrushes-and-hair-conditioner-are-biggest?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Jun 2019 01:00:21 +0000 Nearly 800,000 immigrants in Xian, home to the Terracotta Army, will be unable to buy homes after the northwestern Chinese city introduced new property curbs on Thursday, dealing a blow to the red-hot market. The city of 10 million people has banned new immigrants from buying primary or secondary homes within 12 months of acquiring a local hukou. A hukou is a household registration document all Chinese citizens must have that controls access to public services based on the birthplace of the... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3015412/xian-city-fastest-rising-home-prices-china-imposes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3015412/xian-city-fastest-rising-home-prices-china-imposes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Jun 2019 11:48:49 +0000 China’s property developers and hoteliers are bearing the brunt of a government edict to standardise location names, as tens of thousands of apartment projects, hotels, townships, communities and office towers across several provinces are forced to rename and rebrand themselves. The edict was the result of a 2018 policy by six government departments to get rid of “Big, Foreign, Weird” names, and names that played on homonyms. The policy required the country’s provincial and county authorities to... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3015169/whats-name-its-plenty-chinas-hoteliers-and-property?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3015169/whats-name-its-plenty-chinas-hoteliers-and-property?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Jun 2019 08:00:13 +0000 Beijing’s curbs on how much ­developers can charge for homes has helped ­ignite sales, especially at the ­upper end of the market, as buyers snapped up nearly 500 flats at a prime project in Shanghai at ­prices 10 per cent lower than a similar development. The sale, at CK Asset Holdings’ Upper West Shanghai project, bodes well for other prime projects with artificially low prices, analysts said. CK Asset, which has two projects underway in Shanghai, netted 4.3 billion yuan (US$621 million) in... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3015037/ck-asset-sells-44-cent-flats-during-weekend-sale-shanghai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3015037/ck-asset-sells-44-cent-flats-during-weekend-sale-shanghai?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Jun 2019 23:30:10 +0000 China’s new home prices rose at an accelerated pace in May, bolstered by robust gains in lower-tier cities, while Shanghai and other top tier cities recorded modest to flat growth amid indicators that pointed to slowing investment and sales by volume on year. The average cost of a new home increased by 0.71 per cent in May from April, the fastest gain since November, and an acceleration from 0.62 per cent in April on month, according to Bloomberg calculations based on National Bureau of... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3014964/chinas-new-home-prices-rise-071-cent-may-accelerating?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3014964/chinas-new-home-prices-rise-071-cent-may-accelerating?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Jun 2019 03:32:21 +0000 Global private equity funds – the most agile investor in the cross-border real estate world – poured US$5.1 billion into China and Hong Kong property in the first quarter of this year, making the spots the top and third most favoured destinations respectively in Asia, according to Knight Frank. China absorbed US$3.6 billion of private equity capital in the first quarter while Hong Kong took in US$1.53 billion. By comparison, $1.56 billion went to second-placed India and $1.3 billion to Japan,... https://www.scmp.com/business/money/markets-investing/article/3014697/china-takes-top-spot-private-equity-property?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/money/markets-investing/article/3014697/china-takes-top-spot-private-equity-property?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 16 Jun 2019 23:05:05 +0000 China’s slowing economy and the ongoing trade war with the US mean it has less room to increase cooling measures in the property sector, one of the most important economic drivers, according to analysts. China’s real estate sector has been rife with rumours the government will further rein in the booming market with measures that may include denying certain developers access to the onshore bond market to curb their aggressive bidding for land being auctioned off. Property sales in May showed... https://www.scmp.com/property/article/3014494/trade-war-effects-leave-china-less-room-tighten-property-curbs-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/article/3014494/trade-war-effects-leave-china-less-room-tighten-property-curbs-say?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 14 Jun 2019 09:00:07 +0000 Authorities in Dongguan, a major manufacturing hub near Shenzhen, have changed the way land auctions are carried out in a bid to cool the sizzling market. It comes after a flurry of aggressive bidding wars involving developers desperate to get a foothold in the Greater Bay Area drove Dongguan’s land prices to unprecedented levels in the first five months of the year. Under the new mechanism, instead of awarding the land to the highest bidder, it will go to the developer whose offer is closest to... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3014011/can-worlds-factory-dongguan-tame-its-runaway-land-prices?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3014011/can-worlds-factory-dongguan-tame-its-runaway-land-prices?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 11 Jun 2019 23:30:11 +0000 Hangzhou, the provincial capital of the third most indebted Chinese region, raised more funds through land sales than any other Chinese city in the first five months of this year, as the local authority grapples with how to pay for a massive infrastructure and construction binge ahead of the 2022 Asian Games. The city renowned for its picturesque West Lake raised 113.5 billion yuan by selling 295 land parcels in the five months through May, according to calculations by the South China Morning... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3013382/hangzhou-raises-us164-billion-land-sales-just-five-months?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3013382/hangzhou-raises-us164-billion-land-sales-just-five-months?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Jun 2019 07:17:21 +0000 The rush by Chinese real estate developers to rebuild their land banks during the recent property revival could expose those with weaker capital positions to problems as bond repayments come due, S&P Global Ratings said in a research note on Wednesday. The rating agency said it was most concerned about real estate companies with thin land reserves, as these groups have been active in building up reserves in step with the rising market since March. “Given the strength of the market, developers... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3013248/ratings-agency-sp-warns-risks-aggressive-land-banking-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3013248/ratings-agency-sp-warns-risks-aggressive-land-banking-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Jun 2019 10:45:54 +0000 China’s antitrust regulator slapped a US$23.6 million fine on Ford Motor Company’s Chinese venture for restricting sales prices in its hometown, taking the second such action against US carmakers in three years as trade tensions deteriorated between the world’s two largest economies. Changan Ford Automobile, the 50:50 venture between Michigan-based Ford and Chongqing Changan Automobile, must pay a penalty of 162.8 million yuan (US$23.6 million) – equivalent to 4 per cent of the venture’s annual... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3013196/chinas-antitrust-regulator-fines-fords-changan-venture-us236?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3013196/chinas-antitrust-regulator-fines-fords-changan-venture-us236?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Jun 2019 06:23:21 +0000 Cambodia’s housing market is on a roll. A thriving job market as a result of the booming economy has boosted demand for housing. This has pushed rental yields to 8 to 10 per cent, and asset appreciation to 15 per cent per year, making the Southeast Asian nation’s property sector an ideal bet for Chinese investors seeking overseas assets as a hedge against yuan devaluation, say market observers. The country’s gross domestic product grew 7.5 per cent and exports surged 17.6 per cent last year,... https://www.scmp.com/property/international/article/3013103/cambodian-property-proves-popular-chinese-buyers-mainland?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/international/article/3013103/cambodian-property-proves-popular-chinese-buyers-mainland?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Jun 2019 02:00:14 +0000 The Link Real Estate Investment Trust (Link Reit), Asia’s largest real estate investment trust, announced on Monday modest growth in property income for 2018 and said it plans to acquire more commercial properties in China’s top tier cities, adding to its holdings in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. “There is no lack of projects [in first-tier cities] under discussion. But the firm remains very prudent and selective, looking only at properties that can add value to our asset portfolio... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012925/link-reit-looks-mainland-hong-kong-rent-growth-cools?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012925/link-reit-looks-mainland-hong-kong-rent-growth-cools?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Jun 2019 11:03:17 +0000 Shares of Chinese real estate developers were under pressure on Monday after reports that regulators plan to restrict access to funding through the bond market, reflecting the latest move to cool a property market that has been heating up since early this year. The bond financing halt, could be a blow to developers who count on the bond market as a major financing channel, aside from direct bank loans, shadow banking and offshore funding. The 40 top property developers monitored by Shanghai... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012874/real-estate-developers-slammed-after-china-reportedly?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012874/real-estate-developers-slammed-after-china-reportedly?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Jun 2019 08:30:10 +0000 Indonesian co-working space operator CEO Suite has taken up the slot left vacant by its troubled Chinese rival Kr Space in Hong Kong, wading into a fiercely competitive sector that already boasts the world’s most expensive office address. In a sign of just how heated the market is, the Jakarta-based shared office operator will pay twice the average rent for its 27,000 square foot location in the K11 Atelier commercial tower in Tsim Sha Tsui, its landlord New World Development (NWD) said on... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012651/exit-kr-space-enter-ceo-suite-indonesian-co-working-space?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012651/exit-kr-space-enter-ceo-suite-indonesian-co-working-space?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jun 2019 00:00:10 +0000 If you’ve yet to hear of Greenland Holdings, Seazen Holdings or China Fortune Land Development, don’t worry. You likely will be hearing more about them soon, if you are a foreign investor looking for more China exposure. They are big developers in China’s quirky property market – a key driver of the economy and subject to much steering from Beijing and local governments. And they are well known to investors in the mainland China’s stock markets. Now they will become a bigger part of some foreign... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3012472/explainer-what-foreign-investors-need-know-about-chinas-property-market?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3012472/explainer-what-foreign-investors-need-know-about-chinas-property-market?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 May 2019 23:30:12 +0000 Hong Kong developer Henderson Land Development kicked off the post-Lee Shau-kee era with its first foray in Beijing’s residential market in 15 years, winning a 39,479 square metre plot in the Chinese capital’s Chaoyang district for 3 billion yuan (US$440 million) on Tuesday. It is a surprise win for Henderson Land – it outbid 11 mainland Chinese companies, including Ping’an, Country Garden and Longfor, having been absent from Beijing’s land market for more than a decade. The last project it won... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3012177/henderson-land-marks-lee-shau-kee-departure-record-breaking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3012177/henderson-land-marks-lee-shau-kee-departure-record-breaking?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 May 2019 12:14:59 +0000 Some young professionals in ­Beijing are taking to the co-living concept as a way to meet new people and recapture a sense of community living. For many mainlanders, the co-living concept is reminiscent of the housing conditions of the 1990s when much of the urban housing stock was assigned by work units. While much of that housing was considered ramshackle, it did provide a sense of community where it was common to know one’s neighbours. The blocks of high-rise flats that have risen across... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012149/beijingers-look-co-living-tonic-loneliness-modern-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3012149/beijingers-look-co-living-tonic-loneliness-modern-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 May 2019 10:00:19 +0000 Suzhou, a manufacturing hub near Shanghai dubbed the “Venice of China”, is considering new property restrictions to cool runaway home prices. A second-tier city with a population of 10.7 million, its property market has reported an uptick in property sales and sentiment since February. According to a report in the Paper, a publication of the Shanghai government-owned United Media Group, on Monday, the Suzhou government and developers decided to restrict increases in annual new home prices to... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3011980/government-developers-suzhou-venice-china-agree-limit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3011980/government-developers-suzhou-venice-china-agree-limit?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 May 2019 09:44:31 +0000 At least eight mainland developers have filed or plan to file for initial public offerings in Hong Kong – but they are actually eying the debt market, where they hope to entice investors with high yield offerings. Most are small-cap property stocks, hardly the darlings of the equity market in Hong Kong. But their high-yield bond offerings – some at 9.1 per cent – can attract investors with high-risk appetite, according to interviews by the South China Morning Post with industry insiders and a... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3011640/flurry-china-small-developers-listing-debt-hk-board-offers-high?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3011640/flurry-china-small-developers-listing-debt-hk-board-offers-high?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 May 2019 06:17:22 +0000 Growth in home prices in China’s bigger cities is expected to outperform the national average in 2019, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a top government think tank, said in report released on Thursday. A relatively short supply of new homes will exert an upwards pressure on national home prices, which the think tank said could add 7.6 per cent to 9,206 yuan (US$1,350) per square metre. However, sales by floor space could decline 0.84 per cent, from a historical high in 2018, according to... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3011492/growth-home-prices-chinas-bigger-cities-may-push-costs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3011492/growth-home-prices-chinas-bigger-cities-may-push-costs?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 May 2019 07:54:53 +0000 Chinese insurers are benefiting from Beijing’s deleveraging drive, as a scarcity of long-term funds helps them seal commercial property deals. Chinese commercial banks’ funding of the property sector has been clipped by the central government’s debt-reduction campaign, which has given insurers an upper hand when it comes to premier assets. China Life Capital Investment, the property investment arm of insurance giant China Life Insurance, is among the beneficiaries. “In the old days, some... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3011073/china-lifes-property-investment-arm-among-funds-making-hay?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3011073/china-lifes-property-investment-arm-among-funds-making-hay?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 May 2019 04:20:16 +0000 New home prices rose in almost all of the 70 Chinese cities monitored by the government in April, as upbeat sentiment extended its reach. The average cost of a new house increased by 0.62 per cent, about the same as the rise in March and higher than the 0.53 per cent gain in February, according to a Bloomberg calculations based on National Bureau of Statistics data released on Thursday morning. Prices climbed in 67 out of the 70 cities tracked by the bureau, a jump from 65 and 57 cities in March... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010412/new-home-prices-rise-almost-all-chinese-cities-lower?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010412/new-home-prices-rise-almost-all-chinese-cities-lower?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 May 2019 02:54:59 +0000 Wanda Group, the profligate Chinese conglomerate that is halfway through a massive debt-shedding exercise, is back with its shopping spree, investing as much as 147 billion yuan (US$21 billion) over the past month in several real estate projects in the country. Tycoon Wang Jianlin’s property-to-entertainment conglomerate, which unveiled an 80 billion yuan project in Shenyang said its “world-class” cultural tourism project will comprise an international hospital, an international school and five... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3010345/property-mogul-wang-jianlins-wanda-group-invest-us117b-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3010345/property-mogul-wang-jianlins-wanda-group-invest-us117b-world?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 May 2019 13:00:10 +0000 Beijing’s plan to unveil a nationwide property tax could become a casualty of the escalating US-China trade war, as efforts to push ahead with draft legislation on the new levy appear to be temporarily on hold. Rising uncertainty in the international environment means that “conditions are not ready” for rolling out a property tax law, Zhang Yiqun, an official with China Law Society, a policy institute under China’s Ministry of Finance, told the Securities Daily in a report on Wednesday. “An... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010328/chinas-plan-tax-property-takes-unexpected-twist-thanks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010328/chinas-plan-tax-property-takes-unexpected-twist-thanks?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 May 2019 09:30:12 +0000 Shenzhen home sales touched a record high in April amid falling mortgage rates, population influx and a cyclical upturn in sentiment, according to official data. But industry analysts and agents were quick to point out the surge in April reflected mostly an increase in March and early April, when buyers returned to the market with an upbeat outlook and pushed up sales volumes. This is because of a lag between actual sales and official registration. According to data from the official Shenzhen... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010195/shenzhen-home-sales-rose-66-cent-hit-30-month-high?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010195/shenzhen-home-sales-rose-66-cent-hit-30-month-high?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 May 2019 01:00:15 +0000 Investment in property technology globally has reached US$20 billion over the past six years, with more than a third of the money going into China, ­according to property broker JLL. Venture capital companies are taking increased notice of “proptech” as it reshapes how offices and shopping centres are developed, occupied and managed, with China in the forefront. “With the government's strong support and the tech-­savviness of the nation, the scope and scale of proptech growth in China is... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010130/china-embraces-use-proptech-improve-office-design-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3010130/china-embraces-use-proptech-improve-office-design-and?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 May 2019 22:30:06 +0000 China’s response to the imposition of increased tariffs by the Trump Administration suggests that a protracted trade war lies ahead, but investors’ sensitivity to escalations and de-escalations could wane over time, according to observers. People’s Daily, the Communist Party of China’s official newspaper, said in a Sunday editorial Beijing will not “bow to any brinkmanship” and “will not back down on principle issues”. Global Times, a nationalist newspaper affiliated with People’s Daily, said... https://www.scmp.com/business/money/stock-talk/article/3009920/china-hong-kong-markets-will-be-less-skittish-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/money/stock-talk/article/3009920/china-hong-kong-markets-will-be-less-skittish-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 May 2019 23:00:16 +0000 Zhuhai, one of the two destinations of the world’s longest sea bridge from Hong Kong, has the biggest potential upside for homebuyers out of the nine mainland Chinese cities that form the Greater Bay Area, according to Hong Kong-based Real Estate Foresight. Although new home price growth in Zhuhai was one of the weakest in the bay area cities over the past 12 months, it has outperformed the rest in sales transactions in the same period, the research firm said. The bridge connecting the city to... https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3009883/zhuhais-proximity-hong-kong-and-macau-should-make-it-one?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/property/hong-kong-china/article/3009883/zhuhais-proximity-hong-kong-and-macau-should-make-it-one?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 May 2019 04:00:18 +0000 Citic Capital, one of the largest private equity firms backed by the Chinese state, is raising US$500 million for its first buyout fund for distressed assets in China, placing a bet on the opportunities available in the country’s campaign to shed debt. “There are lots of good real estate projects with stable operating income, but which are sold simply because they, or their owners, have run into liquidity problem,” Citic Capital’s senior managing director Stanley Ching, who oversees the... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3009531/chinas-state-backed-private-equity-starts-fund-buy-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3009531/chinas-state-backed-private-equity-starts-fund-buy-out?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 May 2019 08:30:05 +0000