China's 2019 property investment up 9.9% year-on-year, sales fall

BEIJING (Reuters) - Real estate investment in China rose 9.9% in 2019 from a year earlier, slowing slightly from a 10.2% gain in the first 11 months of the year, official data showed on Friday.

The property market, a key growth driver, has been cooling in recent months, adding to pressure on China's slowing economy. Any more weakness, or signs of recovery, could affect the pace and scope of further stimulus measures expected from Beijing this year.

Property sales by floor area eased 0.1% year-on-year in 2019, after rising 0.2% in January-November, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

(Reporting by Stella Qiu and Ryan Woo; Writing by Yawen Chen; Editing by Jacqueline Wong & Shri Navaratnam)