China to appropriate action

  China's housing ministry said it will crack down on nine types of misconduct by real estate developers, the official Xinhua news agency reported.   The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development outlined nine irregular business activities by real estate developers through a teleconference. The targeted misconduct includes false advertising, inventing and spreading rumors, carrying out presales without certificates, withholding unsold apartments and illegally charging deposits for house purchases, Xinhua said through its official weibo account. Punishment for violators will depend on the severity of the infractions, and could include measures such as public renouncement and blacklisting.