Shanghai Daily news

The price of new apartments declined in Shanghai in the last two weeks of March, due partly to the austerity policies announced by the city government last month.
The average price of new apartments fell 8.2 percent to 8,019 yuan (US$966) per square meter in Shanghai between March 25 and 31 from seven days earlier, according to the Shanghai Existing Property Index Office.
The price was 8,737 yuan per square meters between March 18 and 24, a 13.8 percent drop from seven days earlier.
"The decline was partly caused by the government's measures announced last month to cool the local real estate market," said the office in a report.
In the week ended on March 17, the average price of new apartments in Shanghai was 10,132 yuan per square meter, up 3.9 percent from a week earlier.
In March, three rules were introduced to halt the rapid rise in housing prices in Shanghai to ward off potential risks.
Shanghai imposed a 5.5 percent capital gains tax on sellers who dispose of their properties after less than 12 months' ownership on March 6.
The People's Bank of China raised the mortgage lending interest rates on March 17, setting the benchmark rate for mortgage loans of more than five years at 6.12 percent from 5.31 percent.
Shanghai's 16 commercial banks agreed to stop providing mortgage loan transfer services to those who sell their properties within the first year of purchase.
Investors were eager to sell their high-end properties on fears of further tightening policies being introduced that would likely dampen their investment returns in the near future.
"The phenomenon is obvious in the downtown area as many luxury apartments are located in the vicinity," said Wang Cangde, an official of Coldwell Banker Sincere Real Estate Co.
The average price of luxury apartments sold through an outlet of Coldwell Banker in Jing'an District has fallen about 10 percent this week compared with before March 17, said Wang.
Shanghai residential properties ranked No. 2 among investors from Asia Pacific for sale after Hong Kong's, a survey by Jones Lang LaSalle, a real estate consulting firm, disclosed.
Investors felt the market in Shanghai has already risen a great deal and might be heading towards a peak, the survey said.