Property sales value ebbs amid negative outlook

The value of home sales fell 5 percent year-on-year to 598.5 billion yuan ($97.5 billion) in the first two months as concern grew about the outlook for the residential property sector, industry experts said.

The figure was a marked contrast with the same period last year, when sales almost doubled, according to figures released on Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics.

Analysts noted that last year's strong performance was partly the result of a low base in the same period of 2012.