Property sector woes extend into July

The property sector is still struggling to regain momentum.

According to the stats bureau’s (NBS) latest data for the sector, published Friday:

• New home sales by floor space fell 7.1% y/y in July, the seventh consecutive monthly decline after a brief market rally at end-2024.
• In value terms, sales slid 13.7% y/y, a sharper fall than in June (-12.6%) and May (-6.1%).

Falling home sales continue to weigh on construction activity.

• New developer funding, which includes sales revenue and self-raised working capital, plunged 15.8% y/y, the steepest decline since November.
• Predictably, developers are in no shape to invest, with new investment and construction starts tumbling 17% and 15.4% y/y, respectively.

Get smart: The property sector’s contraction will remain a major headwind for the broader economy.

• The construction industry alone employs nearly 60 million people, more than two-thirds of them migrant workers with little social security protection.
• As the property downturn grinds on, their job insecurity could feed even further into weak consumption and income inequality.