Pedestrians near apartment blocks under construction in the Nanchuan area of Xining, Qinghai province, China, on Tuesday, September 28, 2021. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
Pedestrians near apartment blocks under construction in the Nanchuan area of Xining, Qinghai province, China, on Tuesday, September 28, 2021. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

China's top developers have asked the government to ease its property-sector crackdown, local media reported, amid growing concerns about the fallout from China Evergrande Group's debt crisis.

Senior managers of 10 firms asked for "moderate" loosening of real-estate policies at a meeting organized by government-linked industry group China Real Estate Association, China Business News reported on its WeChat account.

The real-estate division head of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development attended, as did companies including Poly Developments and Holdings Group Co., China Vanke Co. and Sunac China Holdings, according to China Business News.

The developers' main requests include stabilizing market expectations, support for home buyers that have genuine housing needs and adjustments in land prices, the report said, citing unidentified people with knowledge of the meeting.

China's central bank on Friday broke its silence on the Evergrande debt crisis, saying risks to the financial system stemming from the developer's struggles are "controllable" and unlikely to spread. A surprise default by Fantasia Holdings Group Co. and a warning from Sinic Holdings Group Co. that a default was imminent have stoked concerns about contagion.

The China Real Estate Association in a statement confirmed a symposium with developers took place in Beijing on Friday afternoon. The companies briefed attendees about business operations in the first three quarters of the year, and gave opinions and suggestions, it said, without elaborating.

Speculation over a meeting contributed to a rally in the shares of Chinese developers earlier this week.

A report Saturday on the Economic Observer Network said the housing ministry is drafting rules to strengthen the supervision of developers' pre-sale funds after various forms of violations by companies. The report, which cited an unnamed source close to the authorities, didn't provide more details. - Bloomberg

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