Feb. 18, 2008 (China Knowledge) - Shenzhen-based Vanke Co Ltd<000002><200002>, China's biggest residential property developer announced it will launch big sales promotions in Shanghai in the upcoming Lantern Festival, which falls on Thursday this year, to offer up to 5% discount to local buyers who sign home purchase agreements that day.

That would be the largest discount Vanke has offered in Shanghai since the beginning of 2007, said business insiders.

11 Vanke projects - including residential and commercial properties - will be open for the promotions, said the company, but the detailed information would be released on Thursday.

The country's largest publicly listed real estate developer is among the first developers to launch sales promotions after China's real-estate market cooled in response to the central government's tightening credit policy. Last year, it launched similar promotions in Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

Wang Shi, chairman of Vanke, said that price cuts were part of the company's strategies in response to a changing market.

Statistics show that sales of new houses dropped for four consecutive months in January in Shanghai as more buyers are taking a wait-and-see attitude after the government stepped in to rein in soaring housing prices.