China’s cash-strapped developers have become reluctant to acquire land even as some local governments relax bidding rules, adding to signs of their liquidity crunch and threatening to deepen the nation’s economic slowdown. 

Land plots auctioned in the fourth quarter through Dec. 20 only fetched an average 3% premium over their starting prices, according to data compiled by China Real Estate Information Corp. That’s down from a 17% premium in the second quarter and 8% in the third, said the research agency, which tracks auctions across 300 Chinese cities.

Last month, the South African Independent Electoral Commission announced in frustration that it needs USD 22.9 million to collect addresses ahead of a court-mandated deadline, a problem compounded by the fact that most townships don’t have well-marked street names.