China's government posted a 22.9% decline in land sales revenue for the first ten months of 2024, finance ministry data showed. Revenue from government land sales had fallen 24.6% in the first nine months of the year.
China's local governments have long relied on land sales to boost their revenues, but this source of income has sharply declined since 2022 as cash-strapped developers have reduced their land acquisitions. To alleviate the debt burden on local governments, authorities have introduced a 10 trillion-yuan ($1.4 trillion) debt relief package aimed at easing financing strains and stabilizing the economy.
Additionally, China has approved the use of funds from local government special bonds to increase idle land reclaim and acquisition, with a focus on redeveloping residential and commercial sites that companies are either unwilling or unable to continue developing.
