China Home Sales Slump Deepened in January in Blow to Economy

  • Transactions have been falling since July, worsening cash woes
  • Property slowdown may continue to weigh on economic output

Apartment buildings in Shanghai, China.

Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
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China’s property sales slump persisted in January with top developers seeing a steeper decline in transactions, signaling the sector may remain a drag on the economy.

The 100 biggest companies in China’s debt-ridden property industry suffered a 39.6% drop in sales from a year earlier, compared with a 35.2% decline in December, according to preliminary data by China Real Estate Information Corp.