PROPERTY investment in China grew the most in eight months in March, as demand recovered and market sentiment improved in the wake of looser monetary conditions and a modest relaxation of home purchase curbs.

Real estate investment, which mainly focuses on the residential sector but also includes commercial and office space, is a key driver of growth in the world’s second-largest economy.

The data, along with a raft of official economic indicators released yesterday, suggests growth may be stabilizing after taking a hit from a multi-year government crackdown on debt risks and a trade war.

China’s real estate investment rose 12 percent in March from a year earlier, accelerating slightly from 11.6 percent growth reported for the combined January-February period, according to media calculations based on data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) yesterday.

That marks the strongest monthly growth since July 2018, when it rose 13.2 percent.

China’s property market has seen a resurgence recently as some local governments have loosened restrictions on home purchases in a bid to boost economic activity.

Economists expect China’s real estate investment to rise by 7 percent for the year, a recent poll showed last month, up from 4 percent in the previous poll, as some developers have shown more confidence in the market as domestic financing conditions improve.

New home prices also grew slightly faster in March after a slowdown the previous month.

In March, property sales by floor area, a major indicator of demand, rose at its fastest pace in seven months at 1.8 percent from a year earlier, compared with the first two months’ 3.6 percent drop, according to media calculations. In the first quarter of 2019, property sales by area fell 0.9 percent, narrowing from a 3.6 percent drop in the first two months of this year.(SD-Agencies)