China’s major property developers have been stepping up their efforts to raise funds overseas in response to a gradually tightened cash flow, as the government’s tightening real estate measures are expected to lead to a big drop in transactions. According to a report by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Chinese property developers’ off-shore debt financing this year has totaled CNY28 billion, accounting for 40% of last year’s total value. Evergrande Real Estate Group sold CNY9.25 billion of synthetic offshore renminbi bonds in mid-January, while Hopson is pricing its USD300 million bond with a 11.75% yield. Country Garden Holdings announced on February 7 a proposed issuance of senior notes with a seven year maturity to fund existing and new property projects. Credit rating company Standard & Poor’s warned that the surge in bond sales has weakened Chinese developers’ profiles. The country’s leading property developers recorded robust sales in January, but the government’s latest round of tightening measures in late January are expected to result in plummeting sales later. Shenzhen-based Vanke saw its revenue rise 221% in January from a year earlier, making it the nation’s first residential property developer with monthly sales in excess of CNY20 billion. According to Wang Gehong, President of Beijing Grand China Real Estate Fund, the cash flow of many smaller property developers has greatly deteriorated in the past few months.