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Elise Mak
Reporter for the Business Desk covering property, banking and finance.
Elise joined the SCMP in 2022 as a business reporter to cover property, banking and finance. Previously, she covered business, biotechnology, and healthcare from Hong Kong and Beijing for various publications, including BioWorld, Al Jazeera, China Daily, and The China Project, to make the country more accessible to international readers.
June sales plunged 28.1 per cent year on year among the 100 largest developers, according to CRIC data, raising the threat of more liquidity struggles as the sector continues to weigh on the economy.
Interviews with a teacher, a county clerk and a tutor show what is hobbling China’s housing market. A deficit in confidence among consumers may be hard to overcome, analysts say.
Chinese developers are making slow progress with their debt restructuring and chances of them getting back on track are slim, Moody’s said in a report on Wednesday.
Four listed builders in China have received approvals for their equity financing plans, indicating that Beijing’s ‘third arrow’ of policy support for property developers is finally in the works seven months after it was introduced.
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Among 13 cities selected by China Index Academy, one of the country’s largest independent real estate researchers, home sales by gross floor area rose 18.5 per cent in June compared to the previous month, but were 44.2 per cent lower than a year ago, it said on Monday.
Chinese developers turned to the offshore market for financing last month, but overall bond issuance for the year is down, and near-term recovery for the sector remains unlikely, analysts say.
China’s property recovery slows as homebuyers lose confidence and developers curb their investments while price rises moderated across the nation.
Dubai overtook Hong Kong as the world’s top market for ultra-luxury homes in the first quarter as wealthy individuals flock to the Gulf’s financial hub, according to a report from Knight Frank.
Southeast Asia’s commercial property markets are becoming more popular with mainland Chinese investors as political rifts and higher interest rates dampen the appeal of traditional favourites Australia and the US, according to a report.
City’s rental market is looking up again as landlords continue to reap the benefits of economic reopening, with students and professionals signing up new leases ahead of time, according to a Centaline index.
Dalian Wanda Group is ‘confident in defending’ against the freeze but faces liquidity concerns following repeated failures by its unit Zhuhai Wanda Commercial Management Group to get approval for a Hong Kong IPO.
Beijing is expected to roll out a stimulus package for the property sector, after home prices and real estate investment began decelerating this quarter.
Fraser expressed ‘full confidence in China’s economic and financial development’ and pledged to expand business in the country, the National Administration of Financial Regulation said.
Evergrande Property Services reveals profits for the year to December 31, 2022, and says it is in talks for repayment of funds involved in the loan guarantees of 13.4 billion yuan that were seized by creditors.
Dubai is one of the world’s most affordable luxury property markets, according to Knight Frank. Prices are set to rise 13.5 per cent this year after climbing 44 per cent in 2022, the most globally.
A real estate industry body in Fuzhou, in China’s Fujian province, retracted a suggestion that home sellers share half of commission costs, citing its ‘inaccurate grasp’ of a policy Beijing introduced last month with the aim of lowering homebuying expenses.
Sichuan Languang Development, once hailed as a top investment value, is the first of a wave of delistings that could further dampen home-buying sentiment, analysts say.
Overdue debt, unpaid bills, and payments involved in lawsuits have piled up to nearly US$127 billion, the company revealed in a stock-exchange filing.
Overseas deals were the driving force for growth for Asia-Pacific consumer products companies such as China’s Haier and Japan’s Asahi between 2012 and 2021, according to a Bain & Co study.
Recent data and trends, as well as anecdotal evidence, all point to mainland Chinese buyers going beyond Hong Kong in search of new property investments.
Fitch Ratings says it expects solid net interest income, improving fee income and moderating credit costs to drive double-digit profit growth for Hong Kong’s banking sector this year.
The credit profiles of some of China’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) could improve as they invest more in advanced, high-end manufacturing as part of a push by Beijing to upgrade their production capabilities, according to Fitch and Moody’s.
Market penetration rate of NEVs in China is expected to reach 35 per cent this year and 50 per cent around 2025, Fitch analyst Yang Jing says.
After a 7 per cent rise in the first quarter, sales have now slumped and sellers are slashing prices to get deals done amid a ‘downward trend’ that will last through the year, according to agents and analysts.
The number of ultra-rich in Hong Kong is, however, forecast to rebound from 5,686 last year to 7,280 by 2027, while mainland China’s hyper-wealthy population is expected to jump by 49.8 per cent by the same year.
Developers have more capital now, but most of it is reserved for completing current projects instead of starting new ones. National Bureau of Statistics data shows investment in property development in decline, indicating that the supply side has yet to recover, analysts said.
The Chinese Securities and Regulatory Commission ordered both companies in December to rectify ‘illegal operations’ and stop signing up new customers based in mainland China.
Chinese banks are slashing interest rates for depositors as consumer savings surge in a slowing economy, seeking to protect interest margins amid pressures from Beijing to cut lending rates.
The enormous flats in Wanliu House, an exclusive development recently made famous by a viral clip, are available as a bundle that will form the collateral for a bad debt sale, providing a rare opportunity for the right investor.
China’s housing authorities and market regulators said in a notice that real estate agents should lower their commission fees “reasonably” based on the principle of “the higher the transaction amount, the lower the commission rate” and guide both sellers and buyers to share the fees.
