Magnate sales hint at shift in market winds

More local governments on the Chinese mainland are starting to remove earlier restrictions on home purchases as the real estate market continues to cool. Yet, just when investors began talking about a possible rebound in property prices, Hong Kong business magnate Li Ka-shing sold off a luxury office building in Shanghai. This is just the latest sale by Li, who has already unloaded several billion dollars worth of mainland property assets over the past year.

Many analysts closely monitor Li's moves to gauge which way the winds are blowing in the investment market. Naturally, his recent property deals have piqued the interest of many, coming as they do amid a slowdown in the mainland's real estate market. Recent trends suggest that he could be onto something.

According to a recent survey conducted by Peking University, every Chinese household owns an average of 1.35 homes, suggesting that demand is plateauing. At the same time, the market is also overloaded with unsold supplies. Those betting on "rigid demand" from real home buyers may be sourly disappointed.