墨西哥公路事故死亡人数上升至36

 　　BEIJING, April 13 (Xinhua) -- High-end residential¹ market in Beijing experienced downturn in sales volume and price in the first quarter, fresh evidence of slowdown of the red-hot housing market, said the world's leading real estate consulting company DTZ.

　　At the beginning of 2014, affected² by the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday and tightening³ credit, there was a decrease in both transaction volume and average price in the Beijing high-end residential market, the company said in a latest report.

　　The average high-end housing price in Beijing dropped by 5.45 percent quarter on quarter to 49,287.77 yuan (about 8,014 U.S. dollars) per square meter in the first quarter, but still represented an increase of 13.26 percent year on year, according to data from DTZ.

　　Beijing high-end housing market retreats in Q1

　　The high-end housing transaction volume in Beijing plunged⁴ by 23.85 percent quarter on quarter in the first three months, to reach 181,904.01 square meters, a decrease of 17.88 percent year-on-year.

　　Across the country, China's property market has been showing signs of cooling down in recent months.

1 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

4 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。