The real estate services firm gives a bullish forecast for prices for the rest of this year.

Global real estate services company Cushman & Wakefield reportedly predicts that Hong Kong housing prices could rise by at least 15 per cent on average in 2019, encouraged by the possibility that US-China trade tensions might ease.

“If tensions from the trade war continue to ease, I believe the market will improve. If not, then it depends on how bad [the trade war could get],” Alva To, Cushman’s vice president, Greater China, and head of consulting, Greater China, was quoted by the South China Morning Post as saying. "But really, there are only two experts right now [on the economy], the two presidents,” said To, referring to China’s Xi Jinping and the US’s Donald Trump.

Last year, a long rise in the jurisdiction's property market ended in August, with a cumulative loss of 9.2 per cent in home prices at the end of December last year.

The report noted, however, that prices in popular residential areas such as City One Sha Tin and Taikoo Shing have recovered by at least 20 per cent in the first three months of 2019, their fastest pace in 10 years.

Earlier in March, Cushman & Wakefield said that globally, real estate transaction volumes in 2018 were the "strongest on record" at $1.75 trillion; a 4 per cent year-on-year growth, surpassing previous highs of $1.68 trillion in 2017.

The firm forecasts that record levels will be be maintained in 2019, in the region of $1.75 trillion, as investors target a wider range of markets to find opportunity, and more sellers come forward as real estate strategies adjust to evolving monetary policy, geopolitical tensions and structural change. The report states that pricing is expected to edge ahead. However, this will be driven by stable yields and steady rental growth for the best assets rather than yield compression which has typified recent years.