Apartment buildings for relocated residents in Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang province, are ready for handover on April 28, 2020. (PHOTO / SIPA)

BEIJING - China's home prices in 70 large and medium-sized cities continued the downward trend in May, though the pace of decline slowed, the National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday.

In May, 43 out of the 70 cities saw a month-on-month drop in new home sales prices, down from 47 in April, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed

In May, 43 out of the 70 cities saw a month-on-month drop in new home sales prices, down from 47 in April, data from the NBS showed.

New home prices in four first-tier cities — Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou — edged up 0.4 percent month on month in May, widening 0.2 percentage points from that in April.

A total of 31 second-tier cities witnessed a month-on-month decline of 0.1 percent in new home prices, while 35 third-tier cities saw a month-on-month decline of 0.3 percent in new home prices.

READ MORE: China's new home prices slightly up in May

Prices of resale homes in the four first-tier cities remained unchanged month on month in May. Second-tier and third-tier cities saw their prices of resale homes edge down 0.3 percent and 0.5 percent on a monthly basis, respectively.