Estate agents let go as chinese sales slow

Chinese property sales have slowed down this year, prompting some estate agents to let go of staff.

Centaline Property, based in Hong Kong, told Reuters this week that it had imposed a "hiring freeze" as a result of property sales dipping 20 per cent month-on-month in April 2014.

"For agents and shops that can't meet quotas, we would let staff go through natual attrition and stop renting," said chief executive of east China Clement Luk. "Looking at the momentum now, April may not be the bottom yet, May and June could still be on a downtrend."