Singapore-listed property counters fell yesterday on concerns about more cooling measures in China to rein in stubbornly high housing prices.
At the close of market, shares of Keppel Land were down 3.1 per cent at $4.32, CapitaLand fell 0.8 per cent to $3.58 and Yanlord Land dipped 1.9 per cent to $1.54.
“In general, most people would not want to put their money into property counters in the short term, given that there are still policy issues hanging not just in China, but also Singapore,” said Mr Wilson Liew, an analyst at Kim Eng.
The Bank of China and four other major state lenders will end preferential mortgage rates for first-time home buyers in the southern boomtown of Shenzhen, a Chinese newspaper reported on Monday.
The Beijing authorities are expected to announce a ban on purchases of third homes, Xinhua reported yesterday, in line with central government efforts to cool the property market.
The new rule, expected to be announced in the coming week, would prohibit residents in the capital who already own two or more homes from buying more, according to the report.
The latest moves come after the cities of Shanghai and Chongqing introduced China’s first property tax for home buyers late last month.
Source : Today – 9 Feb 2011