China's home prices edge up in March

BEIJING, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Home prices in 70 major Chinese cities went up in March, official data showed Tuesday.

The National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement that new house prices in four first-tier cities -- Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou -- increased 0.2 percent month on month in March, down from the 0.3-percent increase in February.

New home prices climbed 0.6 percent in 31 second-tier cities, and rose 0.7 percent in 35 third-tier cities.