Beijing's Aug. home transactions hit lowest level since 2009

The housing transactions in China's capital city fell this month to the lowest level since 2009, a municipal report showed Monday, as the country's tightening on the property market starts to take effect. The municipal government of Beijing said the total number of transactions of Beijing's housing properties reached 8,076 from August 1 to 20, down 28 percent from 11,179 during the first 20 days of July. It was the lowest level since January 2009. A total of 3,206 new homes were sold in the city, compared to 4,870 older homes, it said. The drop in one of the hottest property markets in China came amid a slew of measures issued by China to curb property speculation and cool excessive home price growth, including a limit on the number of units each family can buy and the launch of a property tax. Market watchers expect China's property market to experience more pressure in the short term, as the People's Bank of China seeks to continue absorbing the liquidity in the market. The central bank has raised the benchmark interest rate for the third time so far this year, while increasing banks' required reserves six times. More new homes and lower sales are expected to force property developers, especially small- and medium-sized ones, to bring down their prices. According to the Beijing Real Estate Association, the city's average home price dropped by more than 8 percent on year in the January-July period.