China's Jan-July property investment falls at fastest pace since March 2020

BEIJING, Aug 15 (Reuters) - China's property investment in January-July fell 6.4% from a year earlier, the fastest pace since March 2020, and more than the 5.4% decline in the first half of the year, official data showed on Monday.

Property sales by floor area tumbled 23.1% from a year earlier in the first seven months, after a 22.2% slump in January-June, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

In annual terms, new construction starts measured by floor area fell 36.1% in January-July, compared with 34.4% in the first six months.

For January-July, funds raised by China's property developers dropped 25.4% from the same period a year earlier, after a 25.3% decline in the first six months.

China's property market, which accounts for roughly a quarter of the economy, is in a slump as some cash-strapped developers default on loans and bond repayments while homebuyers threaten to boycott mortgage repayments due to unfinished homes.

(Reporting by Liangping Gao and Kevin Yao; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)