Reuters reports that finance ministry data showed that China’s government land sales slumped for a second month as demand from private developers further softened following tighter regulations on fresh borrowing.
In September, the value of land sales nationwide fell 11.15% on year to 570.3 billion yuan ($89 billion). In August, sales sank 17.5%. On average, land sales account for about a fifth of local government revenues each year.
Land sales jumped to 8.4 trillion yuan in 2020 amid frenzied bids by developers. The record sales, the equivalent of Australia’s annual gross domestic product, bolstered fiscal budgets and stabilised local economies in a pandemic year.
Revenue from government land sales rose 8.7% to 5.3634 trillion yuan in the first nine months of 2021, data from the finance ministry showed on Friday, slowing from 12.7% growth in January-August.