What’s new: China has close to 600 million buildings in the country, according to a survey that has for the first time put a number on the vast amount of construction that exists nationwide.
Personnel in the housing and urban-rural development sector obtained the data on the number of buildings during China’s first national survey on natural disaster risks, National Disaster Reduction Committee Secretary General Zheng Guoguang said at a press briefing last week. He didn’t elaborate on the number.
Misunderstandings about the number have stoked concerns about an oversupply of housing in China, which could lead the country to expand a pilot property tax program soon.
However, the buildings surveyed include not only residential buildings, but also commercial and industrial ones.
The background: China did not expand the property tax trial last year, putting on hold a reform that could burden property markets and add to liquidity pressure on developers, as the government tried to stabilize investor expectations toward the real estate sector, which has been mired in debt crises.
Contact reporter Zhang Yukun (yukunzhang@caixin.com) and editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com)
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