CHINA’S new-home prices increased in July for the third straight month, a survey showed Friday, as the market continued to recover on the back of government policy support.

    The average price of a new home in China’s 100 major cities rose 0.54 percent month on month to 10,685 yuan (US$1,721) per square meter, the China Index Academy (CIA) said in a report.

    The result, however, marked a slight deceleration from a 0.56 percent gain in June.

    The average price had edged up 0.5 percent in May, the first increase in four months.

    Prices fell for eight consecutive months through December last year before rising in January.

    The streak of gains comes as authorities have taken steps to support the property market, a key sector for the world’s second-largest economy.

    Land sales to developers are also a major source of revenue for cash-strapped local governments.

    Looking ahead, CIA said it expects “confidence in the real estate market to steadily increase as stabilization policies are aggressively implemented and the market continues to warm back up.”

    On a year-on-year basis new-home prices fell 1.38 percent in July, improving sharply from a decline of 2.70 percent in June, according to the CIA figures.

    The average price in China’s top 10 cities was 19,580 yuan per square meter, up 1.30 percent from a year earlier — rebounding from a fall of 0.82 percent in June.(SD-Agencies)