Hong Kong’s real estate market cooled in May, with deals slumping to 3-month low
Transactions fall 11 per cent from a month earlier to 6,442, while value eases 0.5 per cent to US$6.3 billion, according to Land Registry
Property deals in Hong Kong fell to a three-month low in May as caution prevailed amid heightened US-China tensions and stock market volatility, while distressed commercial real estate owners continued to offload assets at heavily discounted prices.
Transactions for new and lived-in homes, offices, shops, car parking slots and industrial units dropped 11 per cent month on month to 6,442, the lowest tally since February, according to data from the Land Registry. The value of the deals dropped 0.5 per cent from a month earlier to HK$49.8 billion (US$6.3 billion).
Last month’s biggest deal was Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing’s HK$6.3 billion purchase of office and retail space in One Exchange Square and other related assets in Central from Hongkong Land, according to Centaline Property.
Meanwhile, commercial property owners continued to sell assets at a loss, with the decline in the Hong Kong interbank offered rate (Hibor) attracting investors.
Edwin Lee, the founder of Bridgeway Prime Shop Fund Management, said on Monday that his fund had sold 10 street-level shops in the last three months at losses ranging from 12.8 per cent to 43.5 per cent.