House prices in China rose 6.9 percent in May, up from 6.2 percent last month.

The southern city of Shenzhen was the top performer again, with prices there rising just over 53 percent compared to last year. The coastal city of Xiamen was leader for top-tier cities and saw the second highest price rise of 28 percent. Prices in Shanghai rose 27.7 percent.

The recovery of China's property market since last year has been a bright spot for the world's second-largest economy, which has recently seen a slowdown in growth due to weak demand at home and abroad, cooling investments and excess industrial capacity.