China-wide en-bloc transaction consideration provisionally totalled RMB324 billion in the 12 months to 15 Mar 2022, unchanged from the previous 12-month period. More deals may come to light in the coming months, possibly improving figures by 5-10%.

While traditional sectors (office and retail) continue to struggle with uncertainties surrounding ongoing Covid disruption as well as a slowing economy and pockets of oversupply, the rental housing market has seen continued government support and is expected to see more capital chasing opportunities in the coming quarters. Chinese authorities exempted affordable rental housing projects from property credit control in early March while the inclusion of affordable rental housing into China I-REITs has also received a green light. These policies come on the back of earlier ones which reduced operational tax rates. The government is also taking steps to instil best practices such as setting up strict rules on the usage of deposits to avoid a repeat of 2018-19. CIFI sold its 30% stake in Shanghai Pujiang OTC Youmi Community project (上海浦江华侨城柚米社区) to majority (70%) stakeholder Ping An in February, thus becoming the sole owner. Insurance companies have been a significant investor in the residential sector, given their long-term investment horizon, stable performance and alignment with government objectives.