Investors' expectations for housing prices rebound

Investors' expectations for rising housing prices in China have rebounded as policy support and improving market activity stabilize the property sector, according to a new survey released by Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business.

About 45.2 percent of respondents now expect housing prices to increase, up 8.6 percentage points from the previous survey in December, the school said in its latest quarterly investor sentiment report.

The improvement comes as Chinese cities have rolled out a fresh round of stimulus measures aimed at reviving housing demand and lowering purchasing costs.

In early May, several major cities — including Shenzhen and Guangzhou in Guangdong province, as well as Wuhan in Hubei province and Tianjin — introduced new policies designed to support the housing market. Measures include easing purchase restrictions, raising housing provident fund loan limits and offering additional subsidies to homebuyers.

The moves followed a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee in April that called for stabilizing the real estate market and adjusting regulatory policies in a steady and orderly manner.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, prices of secondhand homes in first-tier cities — including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen — rose 0.4 percent month-on-month in March, reversing a 0.1 percent decline in February. Prices of newly built homes in the same cities increased 0.2 percent in March after remaining flat the previous month.

Despite improving sentiment, the survey suggests that investors remain cautious about increasing their exposure to property. About 13.6 percent of respondents said they planned to increase property investment, while 28.8 percent said they intend to reduce exposure.

Researchers said the results indicate that although expectations are improving, buyers and sellers remain locked in a cautious standoff, meaning policy support may take time to translate into sustained price growth.

Beyond property, the survey also highlighted widening performance gaps among China's listed companies.

Trailing 12-month net profit growth at listed private enterprises rebounded to 22.5 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, while State-owned enterprises saw profits decline 14.5 percent, according to the report. 

Companies in strategic emerging industries recorded profit growth of about 21 percent, while traditional sectors saw profits fall 6.1 percent, underscoring a structural shift toward innovation-led industries. 

"Corporate performance in China's equity market is becoming increasingly bifurcated," Liu Jing, the report's co-author and director of Investment Research Department at CKGSB, said.

"Private enterprises and sectors linked to new quality productive forces are seeing strong momentum, while State-owned enterprises and traditional industries remain under pressure."

The quarterly survey, now in its 20th edition, is based on responses collected in April alongside analysis of corporate earnings and macroeconomic indicators, and aims to track investor expectations across China's capital markets.