GRA Market Weekly (2025-06-14)

Policy Watch

SAMR issues notice on replacing aging residential elevators, with national subsidy support

On 11 June, to advance the replacement of aging residential elevators funded by ultra-long special treasury bonds and fully safeguard residents' safe and convenient elevator use, the General Office of the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) issued the Notice on Further Advancing the Replacement of Aging Residential Elevators:

• 1. Balance safety and economy, effectively safeguarding elevator quality and safety performance
• 2. Strengthen technical review and services, rigorously conducting supervisory inspections of elevators
• 3. Reinforce accountability, effectively strengthening safety management of elevators in use
• 4. Strictly perform regulatory duties, ensuring sound safety supervision, publicity and guidance

Targeted Policies

Guangzhou: housing policy overhaul - purchase, resale and price restrictions to be fully scrapped, with lower down payments and mortgage rates

On 12 June, the Guangzhou Special Action Plan for Boosting Consumption (draft for comment) was released for public consultation. It calls for an orderly reduction of consumption restrictions: optimising real estate policy by fully removing purchase, resale and price restrictions and lowering down payment ratios and mortgage rates, to better meet housing consumption demand. It also pledges solid progress on urban village and aging-compound renovation - in 2025, commencing renovation of over 150 aging residential compounds, replacing over 9,000 aging residential elevators, and completing RMB 100 bn of fixed-asset investment in urban village redevelopment - along with using special loans to purchase existing commodity housing as resettlement housing, and further optimising housing provident fund policies, allowing contributors to withdraw provident fund for down payments while simultaneously applying for provident fund mortgages, with improved rules for rent-related withdrawals.

Shenzhen: 2025 development land supply plan issued

On 3 June, the Shenzhen Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau issued the Shenzhen 2025 Development Land Supply Plan, targeting 1,060 ha of development land citywide (including Qianhai and Shenshan) for 2025. On residential land, 100 ha is planned for 2025, comprising 60 ha for market housing and 40 ha for affordable housing (including 3 ha in Shenshan), with rental housing land accounting for no less than 10% of residential land supply.

Shenzhen: 39 measures to boost consumption, cutting the cost of renting and buying homes

On 7 June, the General Offices of the CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee and the Shenzhen Municipal Government issued the Shenzhen Special Action Plan for Boosting Consumption, setting out 39 specific measures across three areas. Among them: lowering renting and purchase costs. The scope of housing provident fund use will be expanded - for contributors and family members without a home in the city, the monthly withdrawal cap for rent payments rises from 65% to 80% of the month's contribution, effective for two years from 1 November 2025. Housing support policies for young talent will be introduced, consolidating the multi-tier rental supply structure of "a bed, a room, a flat" and delivering more high-quality small-unit affordable rental housing.

Shanghai: Implementation Opinions on Upgrading Commercial Office Buildings

On 10 June, the Shanghai municipal government executive meeting approved in principle the Implementation Opinions on Advancing the Renewal and Upgrading of Shanghai's Commercial Office Buildings. The opinions note that commercial buildings are key carriers of core urban functions and markers of modernisation. Shanghai should use flagship projects to drive broader progress and accelerate demonstration benchmarks; take a district-wide view of development, improving transport, public services, green space and other supporting facilities, while tracking shifts in business formats and working models to upgrade the spatial layout and functional quality of commercial buildings; precisely match district development needs by introducing new formats and models to better serve business offices, innovation and entrepreneurship, and talent development; and continuously improve and stabilise market expectations, strengthen policy supply, resolve bottlenecks, and strictly regulate changes of building use to ensure stable and healthy operation of the office market.

Jiangsu: consumption-boosting measures with stronger provident fund withdrawal support

The Jiangsu Provincial People's Government recently issued the Notice on Measures for Implementing the Special Action to Boost Consumption. It steps up support for housing provident fund withdrawals for renting as well as building, rebuilding and major repairs of owner-occupied housing; supports qualified localities in allowing homebuyers' parents and children to withdraw provident fund for down payments; and raises provident fund loan limits while optimising loan terms. It encourages employers and employees to agree flexible leave and working arrangements through collective consultation, advances parental childcare leave and encourages couples to share it. It also commits to urban village redevelopment covering 56,000 households and vigorously promotes housing-voucher resettlement and housing trade-in programmes, aiming to boost housing consumption and improve living conditions.

Market Watch

Shanghai: urban renewal accelerates in Hongkou as 12 relocation plots launch

The Hongkou District government recently announced official approval of housing expropriation for old-district redevelopment covering 11 neighbourhood blocks (Nos. 19, 47, 53, 74, 186, 196, 197, 200, 203, 207 and 249). Together with Hongkou Block 30, approved in April, 12 plots in total will begin relocation, concentrated in the North Sichuan Road and North Bund areas.

C&D secures core Shanghai plots through negotiated acquisition

On 10 June, Xiamen C&D Inc. announced that a subsidiary of C&D International Investment Group had acquired, through auction on the Shanghai United Assets and Equity Exchange, 100% of Shanghai Hongshouli Enterprise Development Co. ("Shanghai Hongshouli") from Shanghai Hongkou Urban Renewal Construction Co., and 100% of Shanghai Xinhongwan Enterprise Development Co. ("Shanghai Xinhongwan") from Shanghai Urban Renewal Construction Co., thereby obtaining four plots in Shanghai. Shanghai Hongshouli holds three plots in the North Bund area of Hongkou District, while Shanghai Xinhongwan holds one plot in the Xinjiangwan community of Yangpu District. The four plots carry total GFA of 215,500 sqm, for a total consideration of RMB 12.35 bn.

Project Watch

Ningbo: largest rental housing project passes inspection, with homes for nearly 7,000 residents about to be delivered

On 4 June, the Yuyueli rental housing project (north of Yingjia) - a key livelihood project in Jiangbei District, Ningbo - completed full pre-filing completion inspection and is about to be delivered. Led by the Jiangbei District urban investment company, it is a livelihood project closely watched by both the municipal and district governments and the largest rental housing project under construction in Ningbo. Located in Zhuangqiao Sub-district, the Yuyueli project has total GFA of c. 263,000 sqm, offering 3,584 units across a full range of layouts from 38 to 138 sqm, meeting the housing needs of nearly 7,000 people.

Gaw Capital: Oakland hotel heads to foreclosure auction

In February 2025, Gaw Capital defaulted on a USD 100 m loan secured by the Marriott hotel in downtown Oakland, US. Market sources now indicate the hotel - the Oakland Marriott City Center - will enter foreclosure proceedings on 24 June 2025.

In 2017, the New York branch of Natixis lent USD 80 m to Gaw Capital's US entity, followed by a further USD 20 m two years later. Gaw Capital acquired the Marriott-branded hotel in 2017 for USD 143 m (USD 286,000 per key). In May 2024, Invesco CMI Investments acquired the loan and issued a formal notice of default in February this year.

Corporate Watch

Central Huijin takes over eight securities, futures and fund companies under the big three AMCs

On 6 June, eight companies under the three major AMCs (asset management companies) saw their actual controller change to Central Huijin (Central Huijin Investment Ltd.). The eight companies now controlled by Central Huijin are: Great Wall Guorui Securities, Dongxing Securities, Cinda Securities, Dongxing Fund Management, Cinda Aoya Fund Management, Great Wall Futures, Dongxing Futures and Cinda Futures.

The shareholding change follows Central Huijin's 14 February takeover from the Ministry of Finance of control of the three major AMCs (China Cinda, China Orient Asset Management and China Great Wall Asset Management). In essence it is a divestiture and restructuring of the AMCs' non-core assets, marking the point at which Central Huijin's reform to return the AMCs to their core mandate enters a substantive phase. The divestiture is expected to directly reshape the AMCs' business mix: previously, distressed-asset disposal accounted for c. 42% of AMC business, investment and investment banking c. 38%, and securities/fund business c. 20%; once complete, distressed-asset disposal will rise above 75%, investment and investment banking will fall below 15%, and securities/fund business will go to zero. Going forward, AMC business will focus on three things: resolving local government hidden debt, de-risking small and mid-sized financial institutions, and providing relief to distressed developers.

Vanke receives another "lifeline" from largest shareholder Shenzhen Metro

On 6 June, China Vanke Co., Ltd. announced that its largest shareholder, Shenzhen Metro Group Co., Ltd., intends to provide the company with a loan of up to RMB 3 bn, with a term of no more than 36 months, to repay principal and interest on the company's publicly issued bonds as well as interest on designated borrowings approved by Shenzhen Metro. Per the announcement, the loan may be prepaid by mutual agreement and extended with the lender's consent. Pricing is benchmarked to the 1-year loan prime rate (LPR) published by the National Interbank Funding Center on the business day before each drawdown, minus 66 bps - currently 2.34%, below prevailing market levels.

Vanke sells treasury A-shares

On 11 June, Vanke announced its first sale of treasury A-shares, disclosing that on 10 June 2025 it sold 22 m treasury A-shares via centralised auction trading, representing 0.18% of total share capital, for total proceeds of RMB 146 m (RMB 145,848,226.80), at a high of RMB 6.72 per share, a low of RMB 6.56 and an average of RMB 6.63; the balance of treasury A-shares available for sale is 50.956 m shares (50,955,992 shares). The shares sold were part of the 72.956 m A-shares (72,955,992 shares) the company repurchased with self-raised funds via centralised auction between 30 March and 30 June 2022 to protect company value and shareholder interests, at a high of RMB 18.27 per share and a low of RMB 17.01, for a total of RMB 1.292 bn (RMB 1,291,541,933.32). The sale covers 30% of the buyback total at only about one-third of the repurchase price, crystallising a loss of c. RMB 240 m.

Shanghai Minfang Group: acquiring existing commodity housing for affordable rental housing (a Shanghai first)

On 9 June, Shanghai Minfang Group announced the acquisition of commodity housing for use as affordable rental housing, with the following requirements:

• 1. Project nature: targets must be lawful and compliant newly built commodity residential projects, ready for completed-unit delivery.
• 2. Location: projects must be located in the southern part of Minhang District.
• 3. Unit requirements: acquirable units must be concentrated in distribution, with total GFA of no less than 7,500 sqm per project; titles must be clean and free of ownership disputes, and units must not be subject to court seizure, impoundment or freezing.
• 4. Price: the final acquisition price will be based on the appraised value of the units.

Evergrande: RMB 11.3 bn asset package offered for public transfer

On 9 June, listings on the JD asset auction platform showed that non-performing claims against 12 Evergrande Group subsidiaries had been put up for sale in bulk, with total claims of c. RMB 11.3 bn. All 12 distressed claims are held by China Great Wall Asset Management's Beijing branch. The projects span key cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Guangzhou, Zhengzhou, Nanchang, Wuxi, Ningbo, Chengdu and Guiyang, covering residential, commercial and cultural-tourism assets. With underlying assets consisting entirely of property projects, this is the largest listed transfer of claims by the big four AMCs since Evergrande's distress began.

Public REITs: total market value tops RMB 200 bn for the first time

On 5 June, less than four years after the first batch listed, the total market value of public REITs reached RMB 201.991 bn. To date, 66 REIT products have listed, with total initial issuance of c. RMB 174.393 bn, spanning asset types including affordable rental housing, warehousing and logistics, consumer infrastructure and industrial park infrastructure.

Judicial-auction home transactions hit a new high in May

New judicial-auction listings totalled 24,900 units in May 2025, down 18% MoM from 30,400 in April and down 29% YoY from 35,200 in May 2024. Total starting prices were RMB 23.2 bn, down 30% MoM, with both new listings and starting prices falling back to around the 2025 average. On the transaction side, representative cities recorded 4,679 judicial-auction home sales in May 2025, up a sharp 276% MoM though down 17% YoY - a monthly high for 2025. Bidding heat also recovered: 69% of lots sold above the starting price, up 3 ppts MoM, and 7.7% of lots drew more than 100 bids, with both volumes and bidding heat clearly rebounding.