Housing biz sentiment edges up in March

SEOUL, South Korea's housing market sentiment inched up in March but it remained far below par, a poll showed Tuesday.The Korea Housing Institute said its housing business sentiment index (HBSI) came to 68 for this month, up 4 points from the previous month.A reading below 100 means the number of companies forecasting worse business is larger than those expecting better times. The survey was taken on members of the Korea Housing Association and the Korea Housing Builders Association.The institute attributed March's increase mainly to rising construction investments and hopes for the country's economic recovery stemming from waning worries about a global downturn.Also responsible were eased rules for the purchase of apartments and a government move to lend special housing loans to couples with newborns, it added.The HBSI for the South Korean capital of Seoul came to 80 for March, up 11.9 points from February, and that for the western port of Incheon and Gyeonggi Province gained 9 points to 70.7.Th e index for the rest of the country rose 2.9 points to 67.4, with that for the central city of Daejeon posting the highest gain of 29.5 points from 52.3 to 81.8, according to the findings.Source: Yonhap News Agency