The long-running real estate crisis has depressed consumer confidence and spending. Real estate investment fell 9.8 per cent in the first two months of the year, the statistics bureau said.
The good news is that real estate price declines have slowed, though they have yet to bottom out. Prices for both new and existing homes fell in January and February, but at a much slower pace than most of last year.
ING bank said it expects real estate prices to stop falling this year but they likely will not rebound quickly.
“February’s data showed that it would be wise for officials not to take their foot off the pedal in terms of policy support,” Song wrote in a report.
The plan released Sunday includes various initiatives, from accelerating the development of artificial-intelligence related products such as autonomous driving and smart wearables to developing winter tourism in parts of the country that get a lot of snow and ice, the official Xinhua news agency said.
It also included measures to boost spending power by expanding the minimum age, benefits for older people and health insurance for rural residents, Xinhua said.
Earlier this month, the government announced the rebate program, now in its second year, would double to 300 billion yuan in 2025. It offers rebates to people who trade in old appliances or automobiles for new ones.
