The average price of a new property sold in Shanghai rose by 7.8 percent to 8,571 yuan (US$1,087) per square meter last week on a week-by-week basis, despite a decline in the transaction volume, Shanghai Evening Post said yesterday.

The average price of a new residence increased significantly to 7,944 yuan per square meter, up 13 percent from the previous week, though the transaction volume dropped by 5.1 percent, or by 384 units, said the report.

Local real estate developers sold 5,201 properties, including villas, apartments and commercial space, last week, totaling 558,000 square meters, 3.8 percent less than the previous week.

Experts attributed the price hikes to the increase in transaction volume of luxury homes located inside the Inner Ring Road, which rose 15.6 percent on a week-by-week basis.

The average transaction price of a high-end apartment in this area, covering the city's southeast Luwan District and central Jing'an District, rose by 8.6 percent.

The price of houses between the inner and outer ring roads dropped by 3.1 percent last week from the previous, while those outside the Outer Ring Road only saw a slight drop of 1.4 percent.

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)