BEIJING - Loans for home buyers in Beijing grew at a slower pace from January to March after policies continued to rein in the property market, according to figures from the People's Bank of China (PBOC).

By the end of March, Beijing individual housing loans grew by 7.17 billion yuan (about $1.1 billion) from the beginning of January. The figure is 24.2 billion yuan fewer than the average for the corresponding period in the previous five years.

Outstanding home loans in Beijing are up by 9.5 percent year-on-year, about 31 percentage points lower than the corresponding period in 2017. It is the first single-digit growth since 2014, according to the Operations Office (Beijing) of the PBOC.

The office said Beijing's credit was in stable condition and credit regulation policies in the real estate sector had achieved good results.

China has intensified efforts to rein in property speculation, particularly in major cities.

In March 2017, Beijing raised the downpayment for second homes and suspended housing loans with a maturity of 25 years or more.