China property shares rise on financial support policy By Reuters

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Shares of Chinese property developers rose on Tuesday after Chinese regulators extended some policies in a rescue package introduced in November to shore up liquidity in the real estate sector.

The sector has been hit by many company defaults amid a debt crisis since mid-2021, triggered by non-repayments of China Evergrande Group, the world’s most indebted property developer.

The central bank on Monday said it would continue a policy to extend developers’ loans due this year by 12 months, with current supports for the sector failing to gain traction and markets expecting more stimulus to be rolled out soon.

By 0200 GMT, Hong Kong’s Mainland Properties Index narrowed gains to 1%, while China’s CSI 300 Real Estate Index edged up 0.6%.

Sunac China, Logan Group and KWG Group listed in Hong Kong were among the top gainers, rising around 4%.

Last November, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) issued a notice outlining 16 measures to support the cash-strapped sector, including loan repayment extensions, in a push to ease a liquidity crunch.

An additional one-year extension to these kind of existing loans due to be repaid before the end of 2024 is allowed, the PBOC said on Monday.

Separately, loans issued to support the delivery of unfinished projects before the end of 2024 will not be downgraded in risk classification during the loan term, the central bank added.