China real estate stocks surge after Beijing eases buying rules

Capital has joined other cities following call to put floor under property market decline

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HONG KONG - Shares of Chinese property developers rallied like never before after Beijing joined its so-called tier-one city peers to ease rules for home buyers, following the Asian nation's call to put a floor under the property market decline.

A Bloomberg Intelligence gauge of Chinese real estate stocks surged as much as 31 per cent - a record - on Oct 2, following the Sept 30 announcement that the nation's capital will make it easier for non-residents to buy property in core areas and cut minimum down payment ratios.

The index has risen 92 per cent over the last five trading days.

During the same period, stocks of some of the defaulted developers - including Shimao Group and Sunac China - have surged more than 200 per cent each. Huarong International Financial rose as much as 463 per cent on Oct 2 alone.