Country Garden Holdings Co. (02007.HK) saw contracted sales plunge 18.8 percent in April from a year earlier, a sign of persistent weakness for the developer and China’s broader property market as government support measures fail to spark a meaningful recovery.
In a filing, the company announced its contracted sales for April totaled approximately RMB 2.5 billion. The corresponding gross floor area sold was approximately 340,000 square meters, a decrease of 10.5 percent from the same period last year.
The year-over-year decline in both sales value and volume underscores the deep-seated challenges facing China’s real estate sector. The figures from Country Garden, once the nation's largest developer by sales, are a crucial barometer for the health of the property market, which has been grappling with a liquidity crisis, falling prices, and weak buyer sentiment for several years.
This continued sales slump from a major developer like Country Garden could further dampen investor sentiment toward the entire sector, potentially affecting the stock prices of peers such as Vanke and state-backed developers. The persistent weakness increases pressure on Beijing to roll out more significant stimulus to stabilize the market and prevent spillover risks to the broader economy.
The data reflects a market still searching for a bottom, despite a series of government interventions aimed at boosting homebuyer confidence and providing liquidity to struggling developers. The central government has encouraged local authorities to ease purchasing restrictions and lower mortgage rates, but these policies have yet to translate into a sustained turnaround in sales. For developers like Country Garden, the focus remains on managing debt and navigating a market with significantly reduced demand compared to its peak.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
