Property price rise rate to slow in 2011 as supply grows

BEIJING - The price of property in China will continue to rise in 2011, but the rate of growth will slow down.

A leading real estate research institute said on Friday that prices will increase by 8 to 9 percent next year, but an improved demand-and-supply relationship, as well as the government's continuing tightening measures, will help to slow the rate of price growth.

"We expect the area sold next year will increase by 8 to 10 percent, and floor space will rise 16 to 24 percent," said Huang Yu, vice-president of the China Index Academy, a Beijing-based property research institute.