New house prices gained an average 0.8 percent over the same period than a year earlier.

 

　　CRI's Shen Ting takes a close look.

 

　　Photo taken on Dec. 18, 2012 shows an apartment building in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province. [Photo: Xinhua]

 

　　The figure could stun particularly those who might have expected further plunges in new house prices following a 10 month decline.

 

　　"I followed closely to the fluctuation of the housing price though I just bought one last month. But every hike is directly related to our interests."

 

　　But the bigger concern on this occasion, may be for the government.

 

　　Two days before the data release, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao announced at a State Council meeting the government would step up regulations in the country's real estate market.

 

　　However, the tightening policies dubbed as 'the new five regulations', have been described as gentle.

 

　　Ding Jiangang is the chief commentator on real estate issues for Xinhua News Agency.

 

　　"How strong the government has come to the control front, how effective the policies at practice, we will see it at the follow-up measures; such as how many cities and regions the trial property tax is going to expand, how stringent the tax will be and should the existing housing be levied?"

 

　　But is tax the only way out here?

 

　　A trial property tax was recently launched in Shanghai and Chongqing on a trial basis, and some residents are saying it has made life more difficult.

 

　　"I only have to pay an average property tax of 15 hundred on a monthly basis as the apartment is quite compact and tight. Even that I still feel the pinch let alone without the support from my parents."

 

　　At the same meeting, the State Council has pledged to maintain land supply and increase it in some cases. Ding Jiangang welcomes the move.

 

　　"The key to solve the problem is to break the land supply monopoly. Say if we could have more than one land reserve center in a city, equaling at functions of land sell and storage, then the monopoly will be torn down."

 

　　The government has vowed a greater supply of medium and small sized apartments.

 

　　But it remains to be seen whether that tackles the price issues marring a real-estate market, which is seen as a direct factor in around 40 other business sectors around the country.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Shen Ting.