New home sales stay strong

New home sales continued to rebound in Shanghai last week amid outstanding performances in outer areas, according to the latest market figures.

The area of new residential properties sold, excluding government-subsidized affordable housing, jumped 41.3 percent to around 184,000 square meters in the seven days to Sunday, Shanghai Centaline Property Consultants Co said in its regular Monday report.

Around the city, the former Nanhui area, as well as the districts of Baoshan and Qingpu, all managed to register weekly volume of over 27,000 square meters.

"This was the third highest seven-day transaction recorded in Shanghai so far this year," said Lu Wenxi, Centaline's senior research manager.

"Looking forward, we expect the strong momentum to extend through the end of this month as real estate developers are wrapping up their half-year sales."

The average cost of a new home rose 5.3 percent from a week earlier to 54,246 yuan (US$7,880) per square meter, Centaline said.

Four projects sold more than 100 units last week, a rare scenario in recent months and evidence of robust sentiment in the market.

The best performer was in Baoshan District, where 197 apartments totaling 18,604 square meters were unloaded for an average 42,312 yuan per square meter.

Among the 10 best-selling projects by area, five cost more than 50,000 yuan per square meter, with the most expensive at 85,000 yuan per square meter.

New supply, meanwhile, stayed above the 250,000-square-meter mark for the second straight week despite a moderate retreat. Citywide, around 256,000 square meters of new homes were launched, a week-over-week drop of 2.3 percent, Centaline said.