Hong Kong home sales are on a roll

HONG KONG - Home sales in the special administrative region jumped to the highest level in five months as an economic rebound and the lowest borrowing costs in at least 20 years spur demand.

Sales rose 13 percent to HK$40.8 billion ($5.25 billion) in February from the previous month, the Land Registry said on Tuesday on its website. The number of transactions climbed 10 percent to 11,733, the agency said.

The jump in home-buying underscores concern that the property market may overheat after prices surged 29 percent last year. The Hong Kong Special Administration Region government raised taxes on luxury-home sales and pledged to boost the supply of apartments after reporting an increase in fourth-quarter economic growth last week.