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Ji Siqi

Frank Chen

Sylvia Ma

Luna Sun

This live blog has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app.
China’s housing minister held a press briefing on Thursday in Beijing.
Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Ni Hong attended, along with officials from the People’s Bank of China, Ministry of Finance and the National Financial Regulatory Administration.
It followed a finance ministry press conference on Saturday.
More from our coverage:
– China to provide weary property sector with about 2 trillion yuan in new funds
– Chinese economist calls for massive stimulus, saying 2008’s 4 trillion yuan not enough
– China looks to tackle problems for debt-ridden local authorities with water tax reforms
– How big is Beijing’s war chest, and why does a headline stimulus figure remain elusive?
– Chinese retail investors, battered by market winds, dial back on enthusiasm


China’s central bank to cut reserve ratio, bolster property and capital market

Are markets misreading China’s economic priorities?

China stimulus ‘should absolutely surpass’ 10 trillion yuan, government economist says

China will win ‘tough battle’ to preserve property sector: housing minister

China’s economic stimulus

China goes all out to stabilise vital property sector: as it happened

Chinese Housing and Urban-Rural Development Minister Ni Hong leaves at the end of a press conference on the property sector in Beijing. Photo: Reuters

Housing and Urban-Rural Development media briefing. Photo: Ji Siqi

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Housing minister held a briefing along with officials from the central bank, Ministry of Finance and National Financial Regulatory Administration


Housing minister held a briefing along with officials from the central bank, Ministry of Finance and National Financial Regulatory Administration.


China economy

China's economic recovery

Live

China’s housing ministry will hold a press briefing on Thursday in Beijing, joined by officials from the country’s central bank.



Welcome

Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Ni Hong is the key official to watch for this press conference.
Liu Guohong, vice-minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Song Qichao, assistant minister at the Ministry of Finance, deputy governor of People’s Bank of China Tao Ling and National Financial Regulatory Administration vice-chairman Xiao Yuanqi will also attend.



Who will attend?

There will likely be more details on measures to support China’s slumping property sector and bolster economic growth.
Analysts at financial services firm ING said the “steady and healthy development” of real estate would be the dominant theme.
“We could see further details on measures, such as facilitating state-owned enterprises and local governments to ramp up purchases of unsold homes, project white lists for funding, as well as moves to improve housing affordability and remove purchase restrictions,” they added.
“Markets continue to seek more details on the overall stimulus policy package scale, but it looks likely this may still need to wait for National People’s Congress approval before it’s finalised.”



What can be expected?

The People’s Bank of China announced an aggressive stimulus package on September 24, including several interest rate cuts and the deployment of tools to support the stock market.
Mortgage rates were cut by half a point and the minimum down payment for second homes was lowered from 25 per cent of purchase price to 15 per cent, a change which was estimated to save 150 billion yuan (US$21 billion) annually for 150 million homeowners across China.
The leadership also vowed to stabilise the country’s economic growth and the property sector at a Politburo meeting two days later.
China’s top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, announced on October 8 that 100 billion yuan would be brought forward from the 2025 central fiscal budget, and earmarked another 100 billion yuan for a slew of strategic construction projects.
Two days later, the central bank launched a 500 billion yuan swap tool to “promote the healthy development of the capital markets”.
On Saturday, the Ministry of Finance also announced a number of changes intended to aid localities and the financial system, including raising debt ceilings and tapping funding from an unused government bond quota, fiscal support for the property market and capital replenishment for major state-owned banks.
A specific figure for fiscal stimulus was not revealed.



What has happened so far?

Persistent distress in the property market has been one of the biggest impediments to the recovery of the world’s second-largest economy.
Property sector investment fell by 10.2 per cent year on year in the first eight months of 2024, with home sales slumping by 23.6 per cent year on year to 5.97 trillion yuan (US$839 billion).
The property sector, along with adjacent industries like construction, accounts for about a third of China’s annual gross domestic product, as well as 65 per cent of total household assets.
China’s leadership made clear the importance of stability in this field after a surprise Politburo meeting dedicated to the economy was held at the end of September.
Since then, policymakers have taken steps to ensure home deliveries, most notably expanding the “white list” of developers to be prioritised for financing.


State agencies have also promised to address “key problems” – naming judicial processes for insolvent projects – by meeting annual delivery targets, managing the inventory of unsold properties and dealing with the issue of idle land.
Sales have begun to pick up since the National Day “golden week” holiday - especially in destination cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen - buoyed by the central bank’s cuts to mortgage rates and down payment ratios.
Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen have lowered thresholds to make it easier for non-locals to buy homes, while Guangzhou has scrapped all limits.
In the first five days of October, the transaction area of commercial housing in Shanghai soared by more than 43 per cent, while Beijing saw a 30 per cent jump compared with the same period last year.


The state of real estate

The officials are on the stage in Beijing.
Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Ni Hong is first to speak.



Press conference starts

As is typical for these conferences, housing minister Ni Hong is beginning with an overview of achievements made during the year thus far.
He names the cancellation of home purchase restrictions and the lowering of mortgage rates as measures that have helped to stabilise the struggling property market.



The minister’s review

The minister has encapsulated the government’s actions to stabilise the property market with a set of numbers, a common rhetorical device in Communist Party politics.
“Four cancellations, four reductions, and two additions” is the summary phrase.
The “four cancellations” applies to the abolition of purchase restrictions, sales restrictions, price restrictions, and standards for what constitutes “ordinary” housing.
“Four reductions” refers to lower mortgage rates, lower minimum ratio for down payments, the unification of mortgage ratio rules and a lowering of loan stock.
“Two additions” regards new renovation projects, as well as broadening the white list for developers.
All have been previously announced by the ministry or other agencies.


Housing by numbers

China’s housing minister says measures rolled out recently have already led to warming of property market and that they will focus on policy implementation.



Property market has warmed

China’s financial regulator orders more lending efforts for white list property projects and optimised funding payment methods.


Increased lending for white list property projects

Approved loans for white list property projects totaled 2.23 trillion yuan (US$313 billion) as of Wednesday, according to Xiao Yuanqi, deputy head of the National Administration of Financial Regulation.
That figure, he said, is expected to almost double to 4 trillion yuan by the end of the year.



Trillions of yuan earmarked for ‘white list’ projects

A question has been asked about major cities easing their restrictions on homebuying.
Housing minister Ni Hong answers, saying there has been divergence between big cities and small ones in the second quarter. Cities have autonomy, he said, regarding their policies on home purchases.
The “siphoning effect”, whereby people move from smaller cities into bigger ones, has advantages and disadvantages, Ni says.


Minister emphasises autonomy in housing policy

The next question is related to urban renovation.
Housing minister Ni Hong says surveys show 1.7 million property units need to be reconstructed in major cities. There are plans, he adds, to begin work on rebuilding 1 million units and compensate residents accordingly.
If necessary, Ni says, the scope of the plan can be expanded beyond the current 1 million.



Renovation, compensation

Another question, this time on the use of bonds for home purchases.
Deputy finance minister Song Qichao answers, saying it is up to local governments to do so on the basis of market principles.
Localities are encouraged, however, to use special bonds in the purchase of existing commercial housing for their conversion into affordable housing.



Special bonds for affordable housing

Housing minister Ni Hong responds to a question about housing for young people and the pressures therein.
With 1.48 million affordable housing units built as of September, Ni says, the size of those units should also be increased in order to accommodate larger families.
The intended path for those starting out, the minister says, is for new-build rental units to be taken at first, followed by the purchase of older units later.


Ministry responds to housing anxieties among youth

Deputy central bank governor Tao Ling is responding to a question about new mortgage rate cuts.
After the initial announcement on September 29, Tao says, major commercial banks released detailed policies on October 12 for reducing interest rates on existing mortgages. Most adjustments are expected to be completed by October 25, with results available by the 26th, while smaller banks are set to finish by October 31.
The mortgage rate cut - on average by 0.5 percentage points - saved Chinese households 150 billion yuan (US$21 billion), she says.



150 billion yuan in savings after mortgage cuts

Deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China Tao Ling says there will be a further extension of loans for property developers to ease their worries over repayments.


Relief for property developers

A good house should be comfortable, healthy, cost-effective, energy-efficient, convenient, smart and safe, housing minister Ni Hong says.
The priority should be on building high-quality affordable housing, and old houses should also be upgraded or renovated to meet these standards.



Minister shares standards for ‘good house’

Xiao Yuanqi of the National Financial Regulatory Administration has been asked about what financial support can be expected for the property sector.
Various real estate financing tools should be employed to form an “integrated scale effect”, Xiao says, as most are targeted and tailor to specific needs.
Current policies will be extended to the end of 2026, he says, and the adjustment of deposit and loan interest rates can also be expected.


Financial tools to be adapted

Vice-minister of natural resources Liu Guohong says in response to a question on land revitalisation that as special bonds are issued for this purpose, priority will go to land that has not yet started construction.
China will also suspend the land supply for cities where housing is already abundant, Liu says, to allow the market to digest the stock. The ministry will also study the use of funding schemes to purchase idle land.


In land revival, bond priority for unused tracts

Housing minister Ni Hong is asked about property sales, which have seen significant improvement this month.
Property sales in first-tier cities are already seeing full-scale stabilisation, Ni says, and the market has “bottomed out” after three years of adjustment. He calls the October data a clear positive sign.



October’s sales spike

The final question goes to housing minister Ni Hong.


Last question

Answering the last question, regarding the deliveries of homes that have already been sold, housing minister Ni Hong finishes with some firm assertions.
The matter is being closely monitored through an information system to ensure timely delivery of homes, Ni says. Quality control is a major focus, with special attention given to the quality of delivered projects.
“We will win the tough fight to guarantee deliveries.”


‘Tough fight’ will be won

In a repeat of previous conferences, after the answer to the final question reporters rushed to the stage.
One asked about the scale of funding for the renewal of 1 million urban homes. Housing minister Ni Hong said “there is an estimate”, but stopped short of providing a number.


Another reporter footrace

The press conference has ended. Stay with us for major takeaways.


That’s all, folks

The authorities’ overarching policy goal is to mitigate financial risks and stabilize asset prices, said Xu Tianchen, senior China economist with the Economist Intelligence Unit.
“The policy approach is to provide support without overstimulating the market, aiming to avoid repeating the mistakes of the 2015-2018 monetized shantytown renovation,” Xu said.
“Looking ahead, with developers still under financial strains and a policy focus on tightly controlling new supply, new home sales are expected to remain sluggish next year. However, significant reductions in mortgage rate premiums and further relaxation of purchase restrictions could help boost the resale market in major cities and slow the decline in housing prices.”


Analysts deliver first takes

Beijing is undertaking an all-out effort to stabilise the economically vital property sector by expanding funding for troubled property developers, easing purchase restrictions, ensuring timely home deliveries and lowering mortgage rates to shore up homebuyer confidence.
Housing minister Ni Hong, pointing to positive signs in home purchase data from October, said the market has “bottomed out” and the government will eventually win the “tough battle” to preserve the sector.
Here is our summary of the major points from the ministry’s press conference.

“Four cancellations” - the removal of purchase restrictions, sales restrictions, price caps, and standards for defining “ordinary” housing.


“Four reductions” - lower mortgage rates, reduced down payment ratios, unified mortgage rules and a decrease in loan stock, with the mortgage rate cut saving households 150 billion yuan (US$21 billion) a year.


One million urban village and housing renovation projects launched through monetary resettlement, focusing on areas with safety risks and high public demand.


Loans for “white list” projects have reached 2.23 trillion yuan (US$313 billion) and are expected to grow to 4 trillion yuan by the end of the year.


Between January and September, 1.48 million affordable housing units were built or allocated, with 4.5 million people expected to move in by year’s end.


The housing minister said the market has “bottomed out” after three years of adjustment, calling October’s data a clear sign of recovery.

