Along with the soaring housing prices comes the declining proportion of low-rent apartments and economical residences in China's real estate market, which analysts say has created more difficulty for low-income families to find an abode.

Figures released here Wednesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) projected a continuous growth in China's real estate investment, whose proportion in the country's total investment climbed from 12 percent in 1998 to 20 percent in 2004.

While the housing prices reported a year-on-year increase of 12. 5 percent in the first quarter, the proportion of economical residences dwindled from 6.1 percent in 2003 to the present 4.6 percent. And the proportion of ordinary commercial houses remains low, NBS spokesman Zheng Jingping said at a regular press conference in Beijing Wednesday.

Zheng said that the Chinese central government was fully aware of the problems and was taking measures to curb speculative operations jeopardizing the healthy development of real estate sector.

"We encourage consumers to purchase apartments for use rather than investment. We will employ economic and legal means to make sure the burgeoning housing sector will benefit all sides," Zheng said.

Refusing to disclose what specific actions the Chinese government will take, Zheng enumerated some popular measures in foreign countries, such as levying realty tax or investment income tax and raising interest rates.

Given that only 60 to 70 percent of households in the developed countries can afford their own apartments, Zheng said that more government-sponsored low-rent houses would be built this year to meet the demand of the needy.

Zheng also called on real estate developers to build more apartments smaller than 80 square meters for the younger people who just graduated from colleges and didn't work long enough to have much savings.

"It's not practical to have the young people afford a big house in the first place. With their income growing, they can gradually move to bigger apartments," he said.

NBS figures show that China's real estate market has become a major engine for the country's economic growth. So far, the per capita housing space for urban dwellers averages 24 square meters while that for the farmers is about 28 square meters.

Zheng attributed the sector's rapid growth to a brisk market demand and a rising construction cost. The price index of China's fixed-assets investment grew 1.8 percent year-on-year in the first quarter after climbing 5.6 percent last year and 2.2 percent in 2003.

"To solve the problems in the real estate sector, all relevant parties including the consumers, developers, investors and commercial banks need to work together with the central government. I am sure it will do good to all," he said.