The number of sale and purchase agreements for all building units received for registration in February was 13,423, up 8.4% on January and 166.2% on February last year.

The Land Registry said today the 12-month moving average for February was 12,414, which was 6% above the 12-month moving average for January and 60.6% above that for February 2009.

Total consideration of sale and purchase agreements in February was $48.7 billion, up 8.9% on January and 206.7% on February last year.

Among the sale and purchase agreements, 11,733 were for residential units, a 10.1% increase on the previous month and a 161.5% rise on the same period last year. The total consideration for residential sale and purchase agreements was $40.8 billion, up 12.8% on January and 199.4% on February 2009.

The number of searches of land registers the public made in February was 369,873, down 25.1% on January but up 21% on February last year.