In July, real estate prices across China fell for the 14th consecutive month, a sign that the authorities’ bailout package has done little to improve sentiment.

New house prices fell 0.6 percent month-on-month in 70 medium and large cities in May, down 0.7 percent in the previous month, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday.

Second-hand home prices also fell by 0.8 percent month-on-month, a slower pace than the decline in June (0.9 percent) and continuing the trend of a slower decline following the decline in May (1 percent).

In the first-tier cities, where demand for housing is higher, new house prices fell by 0.5 percent in Beijing, 0.8 percent in Guangzhou and 0.9 percent in Shenzhen. At the same time, used house prices fell by 0.9 percent in Guangzhou and 1.2 percent in Shenzhen. In Beijing, they remained unchanged.

Shanghai was the only city in China where both new and used property prices rose month-on-month, by 0.2 percent and 0.1 percent respectively.

“New home prices improved slightly month-on-month, suggesting that the government’s policy support is having an impact, especially in reducing home ownership costs and stimulating demand,” said Yan Yuejin, director of Shanghai-based research and development institute E-house China.

“As the year-on-year decline continues to worsen, it is crucial to further strengthen housing policies, with particular attention to exploring home demand.”

Regarding second-hand housing, Yan said local governments should use the price drop “as an opportunity to highlight the benefits of affordable housing, while actively encouraging various forms of social capital to invest in second-hand housing.”

Meanwhile, the country’s property developers are still struggling. China’s 100 largest developers reported home sales totaling 2.1 trillion yuan in the first seven months of this year, down 37.5 percent from the same period last year, according to China Real Estate Information Corp.