S&P is already predicting China's property slump will be worse than it expected this year

A real estate project under construction along the ancient Huai River in Huai'an City, Jiangsu Province, China on January 29, 2026.BEIJING — S&P Global Ratings has lowered its forecast for China property sales this year, barely two months into 2026.The firm said Sunday that primary real estate sales will likely drop by 10% to 14% this year, worse than the 5% to 8% decline for 2026 sales predicted back in October."This is a downturn so entrenched that only the government has capacity to absorb the excess inv ...