, Columnist
China’s Housing Mess Finally Comes for Xi’s Own
Beijing is opening the door to a real estate bazooka. But only a few developers will benefit.
Most won’t survive.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
A third year into an unprecedented housing downturn, China’s President Xi Jinping seems to be finally getting worried, prompting speculation of quantitative easing and fueling a bull run in Hong Kong-listed Chinese stocks.
The latest readout from the Politburo meeting, released on April 30, explains investors’ excitement. The country’s 24 most powerful men (yes, all men) appeared open to taking a different approach to resolving the property crisis, calling for coordinated measures to digest existing housing stock.