Hong Kong Land Registry recorded 10,377 sale and purchase agreements in August, up 34.7 percent in July and 41.2 percent year on year. According to statistics released on Tuesday, the total consideration for sale and purchase agreements was 54.2 billion HK dollars (6.28 U.S. dollars), up 15.7 percent in July and 32.6 percent higher year on year. More than 8,000 were for residential units, up 41.7 percent in July and 48.7 percent higher year on year, with a total consideration of 39.7 billion HK dollars, up 25.1 percent in July and 25 percent year on year. The 12-month moving average for August was 8,062, which was 3.2 percent above that for July but 30.2 percent below that for August in 2011. The public made 497,191 land-register searches in August. (One U.S. dollar is equivalent to 7.76 HK dollars)