Foreign Participation in China's Real Estate Market

A staggering US$14.7 billion worth of commercial and residential buildings changed hands in Shanghai in 2003. Compare that to London's US$1.37 billion in 2003. Real estate investment and development has been a key driver of the Chinese economy in recent years, and although foreign pure-play participants have been slow in coming, China's regulatory regime in this sector is no longer stacked against foreigners.