China Plans Property Rescue in Latest Surprise Policy Shift (2)

China issued sweeping directives to rescue its property sector, adding to a major recalibration of its pandemic response in the strongest signs yet that President Xi Jinping is turning his attention toward shoring up the world’s second-largest economy.

Regulators issued a 16-point plan to financial firms for boosting the real estate market on Friday, with measures that range from addressing developers’ liquidity crisis to loosening down-payment requirements for homebuyers, according to people familiar with the matter. Authorities said separately in a public statement on Monday they’re allowing developers to access more money from home presales, the industry’s biggest source of ...