China property market feels fresh chill as 'winter' looms

CHINA'S property developers usually look forward to the months dubbed "Golden September and Silver October" as the high season for new home sales. This year is proving to be quite different. Instead, they are feeling a chill and one major realtor has warned that "winter" is coming as developers struggle to maintain sales momentum despite gimmicky promotions and discounts. After almost two years of local and central government measures to calm the red-hot market, more signs are emerging that the property sector, a major pillar of China's economic health, is finally slowing down. They come as the Chinese economy faces broader headwinds, including from an intensifying trade war with the US and the effects of a campaign by the central government to clamp down on easy credit - a campaign that has weighed on both property buyers and developers.