ECONOMIC REPORT The total value of property transactions in the first six months of 2015 declined by 6.6 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM76.6 billion, the Finance Ministry said in the Economic Report 2015/2016.

This was compared to a total of RM82 billion worth of property transactions during the January to June 2014 period.

The volume of property transactions contracted by 3.5 percent y-o-y to 186,661 transactions over the same period, the report said. The ministry recorded 193,403 transactions during the same period last year.

“The government initiatives to curb speculative activity, including the real property gains tax as well as macroprudential measures to promote responsible lending, have seen some moderation in the residential property market,” the report said.

It noted that the volume of residential property transactions - accounting for 64 percent of total property transactions - contracted by 2.6 percent to 119,604 during the first half of the year, while the total value transacted dropped by 9.7 percent to RM36.4 billion.

“Residential transaction volume also shrank y-o-y in 1H2015 in four major states, namely Johor, Pulau Pinang, WP Kuala Lumpur, and Selangor, by 17.9 percent, 14.2 percent, 6.4 percent, and 1.8 percent, respectively,” the report said.

“Residential new launches were down by 44.1 percent to 27,231 units in 1H2015 (1H2014: 56.3 percent, 31,155 units), amid cautious sentiment of developers,” the report added.

The residential overhang meanwhile increased by 8.9 percent y-o-y to 10,473 units in the first half of the year (1H2014: -16 percent, 11,491 units), whereas the number of unsold residential units under construction rose by 32.7 percent y-o-y to 67,126 units in H1 2015 (1H2014: 4.7 percent, 50,588 units).

INFOGRAPHIC: BUDGET 2016 AT A GLANCE

- KINIBIZ