AIRLINK 74.64 Decreased By ▼ -0.21 (-0.28%)
BOP 5.01 Increased By ▲ 0.03 (0.6%)
CNERGY 4.51 Increased By ▲ 0.02 (0.45%)
DFML 42.44 Increased By ▲ 2.44 (6.1%)
DGKC 87.02 Increased By ▲ 0.67 (0.78%)
FCCL 21.58 Increased By ▲ 0.22 (1.03%)
FFBL 33.54 Decreased By ▼ -0.31 (-0.92%)
FFL 9.66 Decreased By ▼ -0.06 (-0.62%)
GGL 10.43 Decreased By ▼ -0.02 (-0.19%)
HBL 114.29 Increased By ▲ 1.55 (1.37%)
HUBC 139.94 Increased By ▲ 2.50 (1.82%)
HUMNL 12.25 Increased By ▲ 0.83 (7.27%)
KEL 5.21 Decreased By ▼ -0.07 (-1.33%)
KOSM 4.50 Decreased By ▼ -0.13 (-2.81%)
MLCF 38.09 Increased By ▲ 0.29 (0.77%)
OGDC 139.16 Decreased By ▼ -0.34 (-0.24%)
PAEL 25.87 Increased By ▲ 0.26 (1.02%)
PIAA 22.20 Increased By ▲ 1.52 (7.35%)
PIBTL 6.80 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
PPL 123.58 Increased By ▲ 1.38 (1.13%)
PRL 26.81 Increased By ▲ 0.23 (0.87%)
PTC 14.01 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-0.28%)
SEARL 58.53 Decreased By ▼ -0.45 (-0.76%)
SNGP 68.01 Decreased By ▼ -0.94 (-1.36%)
SSGC 10.47 Increased By ▲ 0.17 (1.65%)
TELE 8.39 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.12%)
TPLP 11.05 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.09%)
TRG 63.21 Decreased By ▼ -0.98 (-1.53%)
UNITY 26.59 Increased By ▲ 0.04 (0.15%)
WTL 1.42 Decreased By ▼ -0.03 (-2.07%)
BR100 7,941 Increased By 103.5 (1.32%)
BR30 25,648 Increased By 196 (0.77%)
KSE100 75,983 Increased By 868.6 (1.16%)
KSE30 24,445 Increased By 330.8 (1.37%)

john-tsangHONG KONG: Hong Kong's finance chief said Friday the risk for people entering the territory's property market was "higher now than ever" as he announced new measures to tame runaway prices.

"This situation is rather unusual -- the property market trend is hard to predict," Financial Secretary John Tsang said.

"I urge citizens to think twice before entering the property market, as the risk is higher now than ever," he added.

Tsang said the government of the quasi-autonomous city was working to control ever-rising prices amid growing disquiet among the seven million-strong population over the rocketing cost of owning a home.

"The current market situation requires us to boost efforts in two respects. One is increasing land supply, the second is strengthening risk management in bank systems," he said.

"We will do both to ensure a healthy and stable development in the property market."

The number of public housing units on offer between July and August will be "substantially higher than the 3,000 units between April and June," he added.

The southern Chinese city has imposed new taxes and staged a series of land auctions in the past year-and-a-half to boost supply and bring down property prices.

Tsang's remarks come a day after a Hong Kong auction fell below record price estimates for a sprawling residential site, with analysts saying government measures to cool the real estate market may be taking hold.

The property in Hong Kong's central Mid-Levels district sold for HK$11.65 billion ($1.5 billion), below estimates that it could fetch between HK$12 billion and HK$15.2 billion -- and set a new city land auction record.

But another smaller plot in the city's New Territories fetched a sale price at the higher-end of estimates at the auction, suggesting officials still have work to do.

Two previous land sales earlier this year sold at the top of market expectations, or even surpassed pre-sale estimates.

Tsang said the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the city's de facto central bank, will announce measures to tighten mortgage lending "very soon".

Carrie Lam, the secretary for development, was expected to announce details of the government measures on Friday.

Despite the measures, some existing properties are still fetching top-end prices with the home of France's top diplomat selling last month for a whopping HK$580 million.

A study by US consultancy Demographia in January found Hong Kong's home prices were the least affordable in the world.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011

Comments

Comments are closed.