Property prices in China's 70 major cities climbed 7.8 percent in December from a year earlier, the fastest pace in 18 months, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said yesterday.

It is also the seventh consecutive price increase since July 2009, and the growth rate is 2.1 percentage points higher than November, according to the NDRC. Except Tangshan in Hebei province, the other 69 cities all saw a year-on-year price increase for new properties, led by Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Haikou and Beijing,

"Despite the government's intensive launch of tightening policies, I don't expect a decline in prices in the first half of 2010, as property developers still have plenty of money on hand," said Carlby Xie, associate director at Colliers' North China division. "Considering the existing supply and demand, property prices may still grow four to five percent by the end of 2010."