BEIJING, Jan 17 (Reuters) - China's property investment rose 4.4% in 2021 from a year earlier, slowing from a 6.0% gain seen in the first 11 months of the year, official data showed on Monday.

Property sales by floor area increased 1.9% year-on-year in 2021, slower than the 4.8% growth seen in January-November, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement.

New construction starts measured by floor area fell 11.4% in 2021 from the same period a year earlier, compared with a 9.1% drop in the first 11 months of the year.

Funds raised by China's property developers grew 4.2% from a year earlier, after increasing 7.2% in January-November.

(Reporting by Liangping Gao and Kevin Yao; Editing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa)