This page has been archived and commenting is disabled.

Meanwhile, China Has A "Small" Inflation Problem

Tyler Durden's picture




 

Until this weekend's Cyprus black swan, the biggest red flag facing the market was the threat of persistent Chinese inflation, manifesting itself in very sticky and upward rising home (and many other) prices. In fact, quite recently the new Chinese leadership encouraged "bold" and aggressive steps to tame real estate inflation and instituting fresh curbs on house appreciation "speculation", which is a natural byproduct in a nation that has an underdeveloped and untrusted capital market - unlike in the US where the S&P absorbs all the Fed's reserves (with no money multiplier impact) keeping inflation elsewhere largely tame. It is this inflation that has kept the PBOC not only on the global "reflation" sidelines, but forced it to withdraw liquidity with several record repos in the days following the Chinese new year. It is also the downstream effects of this inflation that has pushed the Chinese stock market red for the year. So just how much of an issue is the soaring Chinese real estate market as global liquidity makes its way to triplexes in Shanghai? The chart below explains it all.

More from Reuters:

Average home prices in 70 major cities across China rose 0.3 percent in November from the previous month, after a 0.05 percent rise in October, according to Reuters' calculations from data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday."The risk of tightening property curbs is accumulating due to rising home prices along with reviving economy and stabilising investment," said Zhao Xinkui, a property analyst with Huarong Securities in Beijing.

 

...

 

Such a modest rise in home price, if turned into a steep rebound next year would fuel market uncertainty over the risk that Beijing will seek to further stifle the property market through controls.

 

China's fight against property speculation has headed into its third year but the middle-class Chinese are still priced out the of the urban housing market.

A recent uptick in land costs - typically a prelude to home price rises - have changed market sentiment and pushed would-be home buyers back to the market in a bid to beat increases.

China's top state think tank warned last week that China should enforce new property controls next year to curb speculation and prevent an expected modest recovery in house prices from turning into a steep rebound.

 

The view was echoed by analysts.

 

"The Chinese government would like to keep the stability of the real estate market. If home prices and sales rebound too quickly next year, the government might unveil fresh tightening policies, including expanding property tax beyond Shanghai and Chongqing," said Liu Yuan, a head of research at property consultancy Centaline.

Keep in mind that the only thing responsible for some 50% of the upside in the market is the global reflation effort, which at last check has amounted to nearly $15 trillion in liquidity injected by central banks. Said reflation is not expected to end any time soon.

Correction: the only thing that could end it, would be China to make its case, loud and clear, to the world that it will no longer tolerate soaring housing prices as speculators park cash not in the Shanghai Composite but in mainland house. What will be the catalyst? The same one every time - social unrest and public anger over unaffordability of homes. For now, banks are happy to fund the capital deficiencies, but soon that too will end. When it does, and when China makes its case against the global coordinated printing, sell first and ask questions later.

 

- advertisements -

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:14 | 3342234 swissaustrian
swissaustrian's picture

What about a chart showing growth in Chinese mortgages, ie is it a credit driven bubble or an income driven bubble?

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:16 | 3342244 Abraxas
Abraxas's picture

It's all relative, my friend.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:19 | 3342253 Sheeple Shepard
Sheeple Shepard's picture

Since all currency in circulation is pegged to the dollar and the dollar is a debt based derivative of money, all mis-allocations of capital must surely be credit driven. 

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:21 | 3342261 Sheeple Shepard
Sheeple Shepard's picture

In other news: "The head of the UK's deposit safety net has said he is "emphatic" that savings in the UK are well protected, despite the problems in Cyprus."

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21827739

 

In other words" Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:15 | 3342240 resurger
resurger's picture

The chart is good news to the wealthy and bad news to the middle/poor class.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:17 | 3342247 Ness.
Ness.'s picture

Isn't that true of most charts?  

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:24 | 3342267 Sheeple Shepard
Sheeple Shepard's picture

"Heads i win, tails you lose."

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:20 | 3342255 firstdivision
firstdivision's picture

If we continue this trajectory, SPX should be green before noon.  Gotta love capitalism.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 12:01 | 3342841 I am more equal...
I am more equal than others's picture

Who told you this was capitalism? Manipulationism? Yes! Capitalism, not even close.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 12:38 | 3343012 MagicMoney
MagicMoney's picture

Inflation is not a creation of capitalism. It's the creation of government, and their central banks.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:27 | 3342256 OptionNinjaNYC
OptionNinjaNYC's picture

Does anyone know the ticker symbol for a Chinese compay that manufactures Wheelbarrows ??

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:22 | 3342263 BlueStreet
BlueStreet's picture

The Cyprus black swan is turning out to be a pigeon, a flying rat.  They're determined to test 1576 no matter what.  

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:28 | 3342275 orangegeek
orangegeek's picture
Meanwhile, China Has A "Small" Inflation Problem...

 

..and meanwhile back at the outhouse, things are piling up, right Ben?

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:34 | 3342311 LawsofPhysics
LawsofPhysics's picture

"That is not inflation, that's equity for the Chinese people growing, because housing prices can never go down" - Ben Bernanke.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:39 | 3342344 yrbmegr
yrbmegr's picture

Isn't it true that inflation continues unabated in other sectors, as well?  So, this is a spreading of inflation in the Chinese economy.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 11:05 | 3342430 Floodmaster
Floodmaster's picture

Banks only need fools to create bubble/make profits. Home values have nothing to with supply/demand

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 10:59 | 3342442 rogeliokh
rogeliokh's picture

This stupid Market Rally never Ends. Gold start to drop and this
Ponzi Market almost flat again. Whole EZ must fall a part in order
for DOW to lose 100 points. Everything under control.

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 11:53 | 3342786 combatsnoopy
combatsnoopy's picture

HONG KONG DOLLARS ARE BACKED BY THE FEDERAL RESERVE.  

Mrs. Wantanabe bought AUS when Abe dropped the value of the Yen, then they all bought back into the yen.

Where are the Chinese hedging Foxconn's profits against inflation?
Gold?  Islamic bonds?  (they are trading on the HK Exchange now) AUS dollars? 

Do you know if China's hiding their trade SURPLUS on the losing part of their balance sheet?  As far as I'm concerned, we need to get them off of US Treasuries and into our private sector, but neither Obama or Chinese leadership wanted that.  The MIA in 1995 between the US and CHina in 1995 was a disaster.  Stupid politicians don't know how to get things done.

On the other hand, China and Japan are more than welcomed to buy California Munis if they want to drag the value of their currencies down.  The baby boomers ruined this state. 

The media wants us to think that Big Bird is the biggest issue of the day.  Or they meth some kid out, give him a gun and send him to Sandy to "shoot up the school". 

 

 

Mon, 03/18/2013 - 12:27 | 3342963 riphowardkatz
riphowardkatz's picture

easy fix. encourage more gold buying to take the energy out of the system.

Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site!