China's property market shows signs of improvement in first three quarters: NBS official

China's property market showed signs of stabilizing in the first three quarters of this year, as the decline in key sector indicators has narrowed, suggesting that the measures implemented to boost the housing market are having an effect, said an official from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday.

At a press conference in Beijing, Sheng Laiyun, deputy head of the NBS, said that a raft of pro-property market policies are kicking in, as evidenced by narrowing declines in property development investment and in real estate sales.

The investment in property market in China fell 10.1 percent year on year in the first nine months of the year, with the decline narrowing from the January-August period.

From January to September, the decline in the sold floor space of new commodity housing narrowed by 1.9 percentage points compared to the first half of the year, marking four consecutive months of narrowing. Meanwhile, the decline in housing sales narrowed for five consecutive months.

According to Sheng, the confidence in the property market has strengthened and expectations have improved.

"Recently, we conducted a special survey among real estate development enterprises and agencies in 70 large and medium-sized cities across China. In September, the percentage of real estate agents selling new homes who expressed optimism about their business operations increased by 10 percent compared to the previous month, and those selling pre-owned homes up by 6.5 percent. This indicates a significant boost in confidence. So, we have reason to believe that the property market is poised for positive changes," said Sheng.

China has rolled out a slew of policies to bolster the real estate sector, including cutting minimum down payment ratios, abolishing the commercial mortgage rate floors for first and second homes, and establishing a re-lending facility that supports local state-owned enterprises in using such funds to purchase commodity homes for affordable housing.

China's property market shows signs of improvement in first three quarters: NBS official

To celebrate the May Day holiday, Qinghai Province in northwest China and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in the north staged grand drone performances, captivating locals and tourists with dazzling lightshows that fused regional characteristics with cutting-edge technology.

This year's May Day holiday in China runs from Thursday to Monday, offering enthusiastic holidaymakers a five-day break to travel around or enjoy unique local events.

The drone performance on Thursday night in Qinghai's Qilian County captivated both locals and tourists. The show began with 500 drones forming a giant hand pressing a button atop a mountain. Spectators were left in awe as the drones created scenes from ancient Chinese poems and depicted snow leopards, yaks, Tibetan sheep, and iconic local landmarks such as roads, mountains, and glaciers

"The drones showed us the images of a special variety of Tibetan sheep from Qilian, yaks, and snow leopard, which were all cute and impressive. Also, the atmosphere at the performance site was joyful and festive," said Zhang Weining, a tourist.

In Inner Mongolia's Ordos City, another grand performance on the same day featured around 1,000 drones accompanied by a vibrant firework display. The show highlighted images of workers and iconic landmarks, while a soaring eagle symbolized the city’s aspirations for rapid development, spreading an auspicious message of progress and prosperity.

Viewers, especially children, were mesmerized by the image of the mythological figure "Ne Zha," symbolizing an impressive blend of traditional culture and modern technology. As the show reached its grand finale, the drone soared among bursting fireworks, creating a breathtaking spectacle that heightened the excitement to its peak.

Qinghai, Inner Mongolia fuse tradition with tech in dazzling drone shows