China's Ministry of Finance said it will introduce tax breaks for certain housing transa

China's Ministry of Finance said it will introduce tax breaks for certain housing transactions from Nov.1, 2008 and relax mortgage （抵押）rates for first-time home buyers, the moves could help stabilize the country’s property market.

The ministry said the measures, which had been widely anticipated, are intended to help the general public, particularly the poor.But their effects could support housing purchases and help developers as well.

The government data showed that the growth of investments in real-estate development has slowed in recent months.Urban property prices slowed for the eighth month in a row in September to the lowest increase in more than three years.

Among the moves, China will suspend the stamp duty （印花税）on purchases and sales of individual homes, and the value-added tax on land for individual home sales.

It will also cut the deed tax （契税）rate to 1% for first-time homebuyers purchasing homes that are 90 square meters or smaller, lowering housing transaction costs.

The People’s Bank of China said it will lower the floor on mortgage rates to 0.7 times its benchmark （基准）lending rates for individuals buying their first ordinary homes for their own use, from 0.85 times now.It will also adjust the minimum down payment requirement to 20% of the purchase price on such transactions.

The National Development and Reform. Commission （NDRC）said property prices in 70 of China’s large and medium-sized cities rose 3.5% in September from a year earlier, down from August’s 5.3% rise.

However, the Chinese government has already been busy using fiscal （财政的）policy to drive economic growth.The state is making great efforts to tide over the current housing market downturn arising from the global financial crisis.

1.In Paragraph 1, the word “moves” could be replaced by which of the following？

A.Progress.B.Direction.C.Measures.D.Investments.

2.According to Paragraph 2, who will benefit from the measures？

A.Property developers.B.Low-income people.

C.Home buyers.D.All of the above.

3.The Chinese government’s main purpose in suspending several taxes is （）.

A.to reduce housing transaction costs

B.to disturb housing market

C.to improve building quality

D.to enhance the competitiveness of property developers

4.Which of the following is not mentioned in the passage？

A.The growth of property investments in China has slowed.

B.Second-home buyers can also enjoy these favorable policies.

C.Up to September, urban housing prices slowed down for 8 months in succession.

D.The tax breaks for certain housing transactions had been widely expected.

5.We may infer from the passage that the attitude of the Chinese government towards the depression in the housing market is （）.

A.not clear B.activeC.negative D.indifferent