Shimao Property Q1 flat sales soar 346 percent

HONG KONG, April 6 (Reuters) - Chinese property developer Shimao Property Holdings (0813.HK) said on Sunday it generated 4.55 billion yuan ($665.8 million) in revenues from flat sales in the first quarter of 2009, up 346 percent from the same period a year ago.

Total area sold for the period jumped 285 percent year-on-year to 457,670 square metres as market sentiment improved on government stimulus measures and support for the real estate sector, the company said.

The company said it sold 2.88 billion yuan worth of flats in March and was making satisfactory progress towards its full-year sales target, which it raised last month to 17 billion yuan.

Developers such as Shimao, which has projects in major cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, have been slashing prices to boost sales in a weak domestic property market, analysts have said. (US$1=HK$7.75=6.834 yuan) (Reporting by Donny Kwok; editing by Jonathan Hopfner)