Pudong land sold at highest price

A land parcel in the Pudong New Area was sold for 1.61 billion yuan (US$259 million) yesterday, the highest price this year by floor price, the local land management authority said.

A consortium led by Gree Group acquired the plot, which is designated for housing, in Qiantan. The parcel's average gross floor area price was 65,800 yuan per square meter, a surge of 127 percent from its starting price and a record so far this year.

It was another record-breaking sale in one month. In November, a 126,740-square-meter land parcel in Shanghai's Huangpu District was sold for 24.85 billion yuan, a record by total price. It was also the second-most expensive plot by total price ever sold on the Chinese mainland.

Such transactions occurred after signs of a slight rebound were seen in China's home prices. Last month, new home prices in Shanghai fell 0.3 percent from a year earlier, narrowing from the 0.7 percent drop in October.

Nationwide, prices of pre-owned homes in 58 of the 70 major cities fell last month, down from 64 in October. Home sales rose 11.6 percent in November to 809.6 billion yuan, the highest since the start of this year.

The authority eased house buying curbs in late September to prevent a sharp slowdown in the sector. The central bank also cut interest rates to trim financing costs to boost the broader economy, which partly helped the property market.