China’s property investment fell 10.2% y/y in January-July By Reuters

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s property investment fell 10.2 percent in the first seven months from a year earlier, after falling 10.1 percent in January-June, even as the government rolled out a raft of support measures to strengthen market sentiment.

Real estate sales in January-July fell 18.6% year-on-year, compared with a 19.0% drop in January-June, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Thursday.

New construction starts measured by square footage fell 23.2% on the year, following a 23.7% decline in the first half of the year.

Funds raised by China’s property developers fell 21.3 percent from a year earlier, following a 22.6 percent decline in January-June.

Chinese authorities have stepped up efforts to support the troubled real estate sector, including reducing purchase costs and lowering mortgage rates. However, these measures have so far been insufficient to foster a meaningful recovery.