BEIJING, June 4 -- Housing prices in cities including Shanghai slowed down their growth in May as a result of a series of government measures to curb the overheated sector.

    China's Vice Minister of Construction Liu Zhifeng says the housing prices in cities including Shanghai slowed down their growth in May, and housing transaction volume was down significantly.

    The People's Daily cited Liu Zhifeng as saying the government's efforts to curb property prices have had positive results. But the effects are still preliminary. The current housing prices remain high in general.

    Official statistics show the average housing price in China jumped almost 15 percent in 2004, up about 10 percentage points from the previous year.

    China has implemented a series of measures since early this year including raising the interest rates for private housing loans to begin on March 17th, in a bid to control the overheated sector.

    Starting from June 1st, the government will also levy business tax on individuals who buy property within two years and transfer them.

    Figures show that property transactions between late April and early May dropped sharply in Shanghai, with residential sales alone down to more than 3 billion yuan from 7.7 billion yuan or 940 million US dollars the month before.

    (Source: CRIENGLISH.com)