As prices fall, sales rise in HK

Hong Kong existing home sales posted a fourth consecutive weekly gain last week as falling prices lured buyers who have previously shunned the city's property market.

Transactions at 10 of Hong Kong's biggest private apartment projects rose to 44 in the week ended November 23, from 39 a week earlier, according to figures compiled by the city's Centaline Property Agency.

The city's worsening economic outlook, coupled with declines in the stock market, has curbed demand and led buyers to expect cheaper prices, Bloomberg News said. Home prices have fallen 22.4 percent since reaching a near 10-year high in March, according to Centaline figures.

The ratio of transactions for apartments at less than HK$2 million (US$258,000) rose to a 14-month high of 58.4 percent in the first 20 days of November. The ratio was 55.3 percent for the whole of October.