Chinas overheated property market shows further signs of cooling in Dec

China's home price growth moderates slightly in December on the back of curbing measures imposed by authorities since October. Local governments imposed or tightened restrictions on home purchases as they stepped up curbs to tame speculation which some fear is fuelling a property bubble.

Average new home prices in 70 major cities rose 12.4 percent in December from a year earlier, compared to November's record 12.6 percent rise, data from the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS) showed on Wednesday. On a monthly basis, new home prices rose 0.3 percent, slowing from November's 0.6 percent, according to Reuters calculations.

Authorities have unleashed a series of measures in recent months to contain rapid house price rises in more than two dozen Chinese cities, amid fears that markets are overheating. The National Academy of Economic Strategy, part of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), has warned that an "overcorrecting" property market would drag on economic growth.

Inventories in some of China's biggest cities shrunk to less than six months of demand in January, data from private research agency China Index Academy showed, leaving many analysts still bullish on the housing market overall.

China's average home prices are forecast to rise 4.1 percent in 2017, while growth in property investment would rise 5.4 percent, a state-owned newspaper reported earlier this month