HONG KONG (Reuters) - China needs to come up with long-term measures to keep its overheated property markets in check, the official Xinhua news agency said in a commentary on Tuesday after signs of slowdown in home prices in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.
Home prices in the capital city of Beijing fell for the first time in more than two years in June, while prices in Shanghai declined further and Shenzhen stalled, pointing to significant cooling in China's biggest real estate markets, official data showed.
Government measures to curb demand since September have taken effect and it is time to take action on the supply side towards structural reform of property markets, Xinhua said.
Measures such as adding rented house supply and making laws for home leasing are encouraged, Xinhua said in the commentary.