Housing prices dip in survey

Majority of cities monitored saw a fall in value or slower growth rate

BEIJING - Property prices in key cities grew slower in March, and some actually declined, as the government's measures to curb rampant real estate speculation and tightened monetary policies began to bite.

Of 70 large and medium cities surveyed more than half experienced a fall in property values or a slower rate of increase. Twelve cities witnessed month-on-month falls in property prices, compared with eight in the previous month. Eight cities saw no change while 29 cities experienced smaller rises in property prices than in February, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Monday.