Columns about Centaline property index dubbed 'defamatory'

Claims in newspaper columns that property agency Centaline released misleading statistics to bolster the market were defamatory, lawyers for the company told the High Court yesterday.

The agency, owned by businessman Shih Wing-ching, publishes market statistics through its subsidiaries Centa-City Index and Centanet.

The three companies are suing the Chinese-language Economic Journal over two December 2010 columns in which Centaline was accused of "cheating" to encourage property sales and boost its profits after the introduction of a new tax intended to cool property sales.

According to the articles, the Centa-City Index and Centa-City Leading Index showed a 1.33 per cent increase in second-hand property transactions soon after the government imposed a special stamp duty on buyers who sold their flats soon after purchasing them.

The tax, of up to 15 per cent for properties sold within six months, was introduced on November 19 that year.

The columnist wrote that the indices did not reflect the reality of the situation after the new tax was imposed. The writer said Centaline was "cheating" and "manipulating the market".

The articles described the data as "dubious" and said Shih and a City University professor involved in compiling the index were being "evasive".