CHINA'S home prices fell for the second month in October, with more than half of the cities tracked posting declines, according to a monthly research released yesterday by the China Index Academy.

Home prices fell an average 0.23 percent from September to 8,856 yuan (US$1,399) per square meter in 100 major cities across the country, extending their weakness as housing sales continued to drop amid the government's austerity measures to curb speculation.

In September, home prices across the country dipped 0.03 percent, the first drop in a year.

Last month, prices fell in 58 of the 100 cities, an increase of 14 from September, according to the academy.

On an annual basis, they climbed 5.21 percent, down from a growth of 6.15 percent in September.

Of the 10 largest cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Chongqing, the average cost of homes fell 0.42 percent from September to 15,720 yuan per square meter last month, the lowest since March, the academy said.

"We don't see any sign for a market recovery soon at least till the end of this year if curbs remain," said Sky Xue, an analyst with China Real Estate Information Corp. "Home prices will continue to fall and buying opportunities may pop up in the coming months."

In Shanghai, the sales of new homes, excluding affordable housing, dropped 19.6 percent monthly to 457,000 square meters in October, Shanghai Deovolente Realty Co said yesterday. The average price fell 6 percent from September to 21,295 yuan per square meter, its data showed.

Just last week, the city's average price of new homes dropped to the lowest in six months after several developers slashed prices to boost sales, which caused fury among owners who had bought from them earlier.