China real estate is a good catch

Violet McDonald of Standard Life Investments says understanding the imbalances in China will enable investors to take advantage of value in the country's real estate market.

In an investment environment starved of yield, investors have cast their nets far and wide looking for performance. Real estate has emerged as a preferred asset class and China cannot be ignored. With a population of 1.3 billion, GDP that ranks third in the world and an urbanisation rate that will add 77 million to the urban population in the next five years, China is a major force in Asia and the world. In order to fully understand the real estate market in China, one has to be cognisant of the imbalances that exist in the country and how that affects the real estate market. Value chain...