Chinese property deals hit A$32b

SYDNEY: Australia approved foreign investments worth almost a third more in fiscal 2016 than the previous year, as more Chinese buyers piled into the red-hot residential property market, government data showed yesterday.

The figures in the Foreign Investment Review Board’s 2016 annual report highlighted the huge Chinese appetite for Australian property even as economists expect the housing market to ease this year amid rising lending rates.

“For the third year in a row, China was the largest source of approved investment, driven by continuing approvals in the real estate sector,” said the report.

The total value of foreign investment approvals in Australia hit A$247.9 billion (RM790.8 billion) in the year to June 30 last year, up 29 per cent previously.

A total of A$47.3 billion Chinese investments were approved, a fifth of the overall total foreign investment and A$31.9 billion was into real estate. Reuters