A real estate agent (right) addresses queries from potential homebuyers in Jinhua, Zhejiang province, on March 21. HU XIAOFEI/FOR CHINA DAILY

　　Driven by growth in its four largest cities, home purchases in China gained traction nationwide in March, leading to rising confidence among experts about the housing performance during the upcoming May Day holiday, which is deemed vital to the overall stabilization of the real estate market.

　　Experts said the positive trajectory is likely to continue through May, paving the way for a bottoming out this year.

　　In the four benchmark cities — Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou in Guangdong province — prices of both new and pre-owned homes rose across the board in March, ending a prolonged adjustment period, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

　　"The cities saw pre-owned home prices rise 0.4 percent month-on-month in March, compared with a 0.1 percent decline a month earlier, while new home prices increased 0.2 percent from the previous month, leading the 70 large and medium-sized cities under official tracking," said Wang Zhonghua, a statistician with the NBS.

　　Wang said 14 cities reported price increases in the new home market in March — four more than February levels — while the number of cities recording gains in existing home prices rose to 13 over the same period.

　　Shaun Brodie, head of research content at global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield Greater China, said he expects the overall market uptrend to extend.

　　Brodie said: "Many local governments have introduced policies to support the real estate market this year, such as easing purchase restrictions and lowering mortgage interest rates. Such policies help lower the threshold for home purchases and stimulate housing demand.