[ET Net News Agency, 10 April 2018] HSBC Global Research said the HK physical property
market has maintained its growth momentum, with prices going up 8% year-to-date, compared
to a 14% increase in the full year of 2017.
The 1Q 2018 transaction sales value was strong with the secondary market up 44% y-y to
HK$92bn. Overall March primary sales topped HK$10bn for the fourteenth consecutive month
despite a mild decline of 9% y-y for primary sales in 1Q.
While there is some volatility in the macro environment (e.g. FX rate of USD/HKD), HSBC
thinks ample liquidity in Hong Kong and intense competition on financing offers are
driving mortgage rates to low levels, underpinning market stability in 2018.
Year-to-date, the share price performance of developers is down 2.2%, underperforming
the Hang Seng Index by 2.0ppt, primarily due to macro uncertainties, HSBC said. It expects
the sector's long-awaited re-rating to happen in the next 12 months, led by developers. It
said the sector is trading at an attractive 46% NAV discount. (KL)