Two of China’s largest private property data agencies failed to release their monthly home sales figures for November, raising fresh questions about the outlook for the country’s real estate sector, Bloomberg reported. China Real Estate Information Corp. and China Index Academy, which normally publish combined sales data for the nation’s top 100 developers on the last day of each month, did not provide an explanation for the delay.
The absence of November data follows turmoil sparked by state-backed developer China Vanke Co., which last week sought to postpone repayment on a local bond for the first time. Vanke’s move surprised investors and added to ongoing industry stress after years of declining sales and high-profile defaults from firms including China Evergrande Group and Country Garden Holdings Co.
“The missing data could increase uncertainty about the struggling sector’s condition,” Kristy Hung, a senior analyst on real estate at Bloomberg Intelligence, wrote in a Monday note. She added that November’s figures would likely show even steeper declines.
Private data from agencies like China Real Estate Information and China Index Academy are closely watched because they are typically published two to three weeks before official government statistics. In October, China Real Estate Information’s data suggested that new home sales among the top 100 developers fell 41.9% year-on-year—the steepest monthly drop in 18 months, according to Bloomberg calculations. Analysts will scrutinize November’s figures, which are expected to be measured against a high base from a year earlier after government stimulus efforts.
Global banks remain cautious on China’s property market. UBS Group AG forecasts home prices may continue falling for at least two more years, noting that used home values in major cities have dropped more than a third from peak levels. Fitch Ratings warned last month that new-home sales by area could decline another 15%–20% before the sector stabilizes, signaling that banks’ property-related bad debt is likely to remain elevated through 2025.
China Real Estate Information and China Index Academy did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday. The missing sales data and ongoing bond delays underscore persistent risks in China’s real estate market, highlighting the fragility of a sector crucial to the country’s economic growth, according to Bloomberg.
