Ultime notizie per China Evergrande Gr (OTC:EGRNF) Azioni

China Evergrande Group is a large real estate developer. In 2019, it was ranked in third place by sales value among developers in China. It has projects in more than 200 cities across China and property development accounts for 90% of earnings. The firm also has interests in banking, insurance, tourism, and healthcare. Evergrande was listed in Hong Kong in late 2009. The company is in the process of spinning off its real estate business into a Shenzhen-listed entity. Free float is 25%, with the company's founder Hui Ka Yan holding the remaining share.

CHINA EVERGRANDE GRP by China Evergrande Group

China Evergrande Group

In the latest turn of events, China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group Ltd, the electric vehicle (EV) unit of China Evergrande Group (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/EGRNF#OTC">EGRNF</a>), experienced a significant 23% fall in share value on Monday following the arrest of its executive director.
What Happened: Hong Kong-listed shares of China Evergrande&#8217;s EV division plummeted sharply on Monday. The dip came in the wake of the company revealing that executive director Mr. Liu Yongzhuo had been apprehended on suspicion of illegitimate activities. 
"The company has learned that its executive director Mr. Liu Yongzhuo has been detained in accordance with the law on suspicion of illegal crimes," Evergrande NEV announced in a filing to the Hong Kong exchange, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/08/shares-of-china-evergrande-ev-unit-plunge-23percent-after-executive-director-detained.html">reported</a> CNBC.
The company has yet to disclose further information regarding the allegations or the precise timing of Mr. Yongzhuo&#8217;s detainment.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/01/36523251/donald-trump-suggests-supreme-court-justices-he-appointed-could-go-out-of-their-way-to-hurt-him-in-c?itm_source=parsely-api" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Donald Trump Suggests Supreme Court Justices He Appointed Could &#8216;Go Out Of Their Way&#8217; To Hurt Him </a>
Trading of the company&#8217;s shares was suspended before the market opening in Hong Kong on Monday, resuming at 1 p.m. local time. This incident comes on the heels of a significant 18% drop in Evergrande NEV shares last week after the termination of a planned share sale to U.S.-listed NWTN Inc (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NWTN#NASDAQ">NWTN</a>).
Why It Matters: Evergrande&#8217;s financial woes have been ongoing, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/12/36093211/china-debt-outlook-moodys-cuts-to-negative-as-property-crash-continues-to-weigh">with Moody&#8217;s downgrading China&#8217;s debt</a> outlook in December 2023. The company&#8217;s substantial debt, pegged at $300 billion, led to its chairman Hui Ka Yan&#8216;s <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/01/30515900/this-chinese-billionaire-was-the-second-richest-person-in-asia-now-over-93-of-his-fortune-is-gone">fortune plummeting by 93%</a> by the start of 2023.
In August of the same year, Evergrande filed for <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/08/33905957/china-evergrande-files-for-chapter-15-bankruptcy-protection-in-us">Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection</a> in the United States due to its severe debt crisis. Later that month, the company suffered another blow when its <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/23/08/34063422/china-evergrande-shares-plunge-87-as-trading-resumes-after-17-month-hiatus">shares plunged by 87%</a> as trading resumed after a 17-month hiatus. This significant fall in shares was in line with Evergrande&#8217;s substantial loss of 39.25 billion yuan ($5.38 billion) in six months ending June 2023.
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/01/36504348/tuna-sells-for-record-breaking-789k-in-tokyo-buyer-says-id-been-feeling-that-the-economy-was-getting?itm_source=parsely-api" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tuna Sells For Record-Breaking $789K In Tokyo, Buyer Says, &#8216;I&#8217;d Been Feeling That The Economy Was Getting Better&#8217;</a>
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China Evergrande's EV Unit Faces Share Decline After Executive's Arrest

Crisis-hit Chinese&nbsp;property giant&nbsp;Evergrande Group&nbsp;(OTC:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">EGRNF</a>) and its major foreign creditors are racing against the clock to strike a last-minute deal, aiming to avoid the liquidation of the company&#39;s offshore&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/09/34967863/chinese-property-giant-evergrande-stock-halts-trading-amid-mounting-woes" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">businesses scheduled for Monday</a>.&nbsp;
The negotiations follow the collapse of a previous restructuring attempt vetoed by Chinese regulators. The proposed deal involves Evergrande offering its creditors approximately 20% ownership of its parent company.&nbsp;
Compliance with Chinese regulatory demands includes the stipulation that Evergrande refrains from issuing new debt as part of the restructuring efforts.&nbsp;
Moreover, the Wall Street Journal&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/evergrande-negotiating-11th-hour-restructuring-deal-to-avoid-liquidation-b03329b0" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">notes</a>&nbsp;the ongoing discussions with NWTN, a Dubai-based electric vehicle company, regarding potential investment in Evergrande&#39;s EV division.&nbsp;
Earlier commitments from NWTN to infuse $500 million for a 28% stake in Evergrande Auto were halted temporarily when the previous restructuring plan disintegrated, the WSJ noted.
Ever since Evergrande defaulted in late 2021, the company has been central to China&#39;s escalating real estate crisis, grappling with substantial debts, unfinished home deliveries, and obligations to numerous suppliers. Chinese regulators had previously blocked an offshore debt restructuring and turnaround strategy, setting the stage for the ongoing negotiations.
Disclaimer:&nbsp;This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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Countdown to Crisis: Evergrande In Last Minute Talks with Major Creditors To Avert Liquidation

A tear-down of an insurance giant&rsquo;s real estate liabilities mirrors other troubling reports across China&rsquo;s banking sector right now showing the extent of hidden debt entanglement among financial firms.
Private equity, led by Ping An Insurance Group of China Ltd&rsquo;s (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/pngay#OTC">PNGAY</a>) real estate subsidiary, is Chinese property&rsquo;s new &ldquo;hot potato&rdquo;, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2023-10-15/china-property-private-equity-s-role-is-the-new-hot-potato?srnd=premium-asia" style="color:#0563c1">writes</a> Bloomberg columnist Shuli Ren.
Ren&rsquo;s commentary published in a Bloomberg op-ed Monday mirrors deeper concerns being reported across China&rsquo;s banking sector right now.
Ren points out that a 2 billion RMB ($274 million) bond issued by Ping An Real Estate Co. Ltd has been see-sawing lately as investors grow nervous about the company&rsquo;s ability to repay. In late August, the bond was yielding as much as 30%. By early September it had risen again to yield just 10% but has been declining in value since and is now offering an 18% yield.
Ren points out that the real estate subsidiary of China&rsquo;s largest insurer held around 10 billion RMB in cash which is enough to cover just half its interest payments over the next 12 months.
While it is possible that the parent company could step in to repay, the firm&rsquo;s sales have been on a sharp decline since hitting a high in 2021, posing questions about its ability to do so. In the second quarter of this year, Ping An&rsquo;s revenue was 284.1 million RMB vs. 933.1 million RMB for the same period two years ago.
Further, there are unanswered questions about the company&rsquo;s off-balance sheet debt. Recently, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) found that the real estate subsidiary had covered up a 200 million RMB overdue debt tranche in a new bond filing.
The company&rsquo;s joint venture partnerships enabled it to borrow cash for years without declaring any increase in leverage, writes Ren. She gave the example of Shenzhen Anchuang Investment Management Co., a vehicle in which Ping An Real Estate holds a 49% stake which was used to heavily gear the firm&rsquo;s property transactions. Last year, Angchuang had 17.8 billion RMB in loans on its books.
The scenario highlights the extent to which there are hidden problems potentially to the tune of billions of dollars that are not on investors&rsquo; radars just yet.
Ping An Insurance has invested 17 billion RMB in its real estate unit from 2014 to 2022, and bears the same name. A collapse of the real estate arm could spark a broader contagion in the financial services sector overall in China.
The observation of firms using off-balance sheet debt in private equity joint-venture partnerships adds a new layer of risk to the increasing troubles in the Chinese property sector. As firms such as China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) and Country Garden Holdings Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryf#OTC">CTRYF</a>) face collapse, fear is high among investors and savers that the contagion could be sparked elsewhere.
The entanglement of off-balance sheet property loans and beleaguered banks and insurance companies is reminiscent of the unravelling of US subprime, when banks such as Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/c#NYSE">C</a>), Goldman Sachs Co. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/gs#NYSE">GS</a>) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ms#NYSE">MS</a>) as well as insurers such as American International Group Inc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/aig#NYSE">AIG</a>) all had to be bailed out by the government as the extent of their interconnected liabilities became known.
Over the weekend, Asia Times <a href="https://asiatimes.com/2023/10/evergrande-bankruptcy-fears-spark-a-bank-run-in-china/" style="color:#0563c1">reported</a> that Cangzhou Bank was facing a bank ran among its customers throughout last week as savers feared that their money was at risk due to potentially over-extended loans made to China Evergrande.
Evergrande owes Cangzhou around 3.4 billion RMB, according to reports. Cangzhou disputes these amounts, saying that it is owed just a tenth of this amount and that loans are guaranteed by properties.
But last year, in a similar scenario, a large loan was taken out via a Ping An joint venture with Zhenro Properties Group Limited in which the insurer was effectively a guarantor. Ultimately, when the loan fell due and Zhenro was unable to pay the banks came knocking on Ping An&rsquo;s door. Ping An argued then that the loan was collateralized against a property and hence was not its responsibility to repay.
Further, China Life Insurance Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ciljf#OTC">CILJF</a>) has allowed its own real estate subsidiary Sino Ocean Group Holding Ltd (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/sioly#OTC">SIOLY</a>) to unravel as billions in liabilities have had to be renegotiated with creditors. Monday, Sino Ocean <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35242419/chinese-property-developer-sino-ocean-group-asks-bondholders-to-delay-interest-payments" style="color:#0563c1">goes to its creditors to ask for a delay in interest payments of a 3 billion RMB 10 year bond</a> after freezing payments on $4 billion of offshore bonds in September.
In Cangzhou&rsquo;s case, the bank resorted to putting up a physical wall of cash last week in its branches to assure savers that their money was safe. The cash wall seemed to have little effect in assuaging their worries however, according to Asia Times, and long queues of depositors lining up to make large cash withdrawals were noticeable in branches across the country well into Saturday.

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Hidden Chinese Property Debt Is Spooking Bond Holders And Sparked A Bank Run

Talk in China Wednesday turned to how much of the country&rsquo;s multi-billion warchest the government is about to use to stimulate its flagging economy.
Rumors of a Chinese government stimulus have been buoying investors lately in Hong Kong as stocks remain some of the cheapest they have been in years.&nbsp;It is now expected by the market that the Chinese government will pour in an additional 1 trillion RMB ($137 billion) to shore up its local economy. An announcement on potential bailout plans is expected to come as soon as later this month.
Li Bei, founder of $1.8 billion asset manager Shanghai Banxia Investment Management Center, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-11/big-china-hedge-fund-calls-on-government-to-buy-stocks-end-rout?cmpid=BBD101123_CAS&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_term=231011&amp;utm_campaign=closeasia">added</a> to the speculation by suggesting that the government start a fund with the specific aim of snapping up flailing stocks in Hong Kong and China and ending what she called a &ldquo;vicious cycle&rdquo; of declining valuations.
Year-to-date, Chinese stocks are performing much weaker than their international peers. The iShares China Large Cap ETF (ARCA: FXI) is down 8.3% vs. the SPDR S&amp;P 500 ETF (ARCA: SPY) which has risen 14% during 2023.
In a WeChat post that was later deleted, Li pointed out that if such a stock-buying fund was set up, the annual dividend return based on the present value of Chinese stocks would be around 3.5% vs. 2.3% costs to set up and run the fund. That would mean a 1 trillion RMB fund would generate a net profit of 12 billion RMB, making a stock stimulus profitable for the government to implement at current prices, Li said.
The newly anticipated&nbsp;stimulus follows on the back of regional refinancing efforts China&rsquo;s government has put in place in local districts across the country.&nbsp;Caixin, China&rsquo;s largest business daily,&nbsp;<a href="https://economy.caixin.com/2023-10-10/102115319.html" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that six provinces - Inner Mongolia, Tianjin, Liaoning, Chongqing, Yunnan, and Guangxi &ndash; have already refinanced 320 billion RMB in debt with new bonds.
The extra refinancing costs around the country are expected to push China&rsquo;s special local bond issuances to its highest level on record, over the 4.04 trillion RMB reached in 2022. Year-to-date, special local bond issuances&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-10/china-weighs-new-stimulus-higher-deficit-to-meet-growth-target?srnd=premium-asia" target="_blank">stand</a>&nbsp;at 3.8 billion RMB.
Hong Kong and Chinese shares rebounded sharply Wednesday amid all the chatter about bailouts for property developers and stimulus measures for dwindling stocks.
Country Garden Holdings Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryf#OTC">CTRYF</a>) gained back 4% after plunging 11% Tuesday when it said that it would seek to renegotiate its debt repayments with offshore creditors. Caixin reported that the company&rsquo;s president had resigned in July and left the company in younger hands since, giving hope to investors that a solution with the company&rsquo;s creditors could still be reached.
Other property developers fared similarly as investors snapped up beaten-down real estate develop stocks on speculation that the Chinese government will step in. China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) soared 22%, Sunac China Holdings Limited rose 4% and Shimao Group Holdings Limited jumped 4.7%.
Evergrande&rsquo;s EV spin-off China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/evgrf#OTC">EVGRF</a>), which was reinstated this week after a trading suspension late September, ended the day up 18.6%. Other EV names also did well, with XPeng Inc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/xpev#NYSE">XPEV</a>) Inc 3% higher and NIO Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/nio#NYSE">NIO</a>) 5.6% stronger.

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Some Hong Kong Stocks Are Soaring Again On Chinese Whispers About A Profitable Bailout

Hong Kong property developer Hysan Development Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/hysny#OTC">HYSNY</a>) <a href="https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2023/1009/2023100900201.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">issued</a> a prospectus for up to $4 billion of medium-term bonds Monday, more than 10 times its average medium-term debt tranche.
The new debt dwarfs the company&rsquo;s previous borrowing amounts. Prior to the multi-billion-dollar debt issue, the company&rsquo;s current average debt tranche for its 5-year or sooner debt was around HK$300 million ($38.5 million) with by far its largest a $400 million 2027 2.85% note maturing in 2027. &nbsp;
The bonds are being issued in the form of zero-coupon notes that are heavily discounted to institutional purchasers, and are priced at a floating rate of forward interest. That means that purchasers of the notes are bullish about Federal Reserve easing now, since if interest rates fall then the bonds will go up in value as the discounted price becomes comparably more attractive to lenders.
The company plans to list the bonds on the Hong Kong exchanges at some point within the next 12 months.
Hysan said that it was issuing the medium-term debt for general corporate purposes. The bonds are unsecured and reliant on a guarantee by Hysan to repay. The notes were <a href="https://www.fitchratings.com/research/corporate-finance/fitch-revises-hysan-outlook-to-negative-affirms-rating-at-a-04-01-2023#:~:text=Liquidity%20and%20Debt%20Structure&amp;text=5%20billion%20in%20short%2Dterm,liquidity%20sources%20and%20financial%20flexibility." style="color:#0563c1">rated</a> A- by Fitch Ratings earlier in the year. According to Fitch, the developer had HK$6.7 billion in cash and HK$4.6 billion in undrawn credit at the start of this year, which was enough to meet its short-term debt repayments. &nbsp;
Fitch said that while it thinks Hysan is more liquid than most developers in Hong Kong right now, it forecasts the company&rsquo;s average borrowing cost will spike to 3.3% in 2023 vs 2.2% last year. The ratings agency also noted that Hysan&rsquo;s leverage had increased to 24.6% by the start of 2023 from 17.9% the year before.
&ldquo;We think Hysan&#39;s liquidity position is solid and it has the resources and ability to reduce debt and improve interest cover via asset monetisation. However, there is uncertainty over the execution of its plans,&rdquo; the ratings agency wrote.
In the note offering, the company indicated that its current repayments were set to peak in 2025 by three times from their current level and again in 2027 by nearly 8 times as its bank debt and other bonds become repayable.
In interim 2023 financials Hysan released in August, the company reported that its revenue and profit were down 9.3% and 12.2% respectively, in 2023. It also said that office rentals were at 89% capacity, quite a bit lower than Fitch&#39;s expectations of 94%.&nbsp;
Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bac#NYSE">BAC</a>) and UBS Group AG (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ubs#NYSE">UBS</a>) are handling the debt issuance while Bank of China Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bachf#OTC">BACHF</a>), Credit Agricole SA (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/crarf#OTC">CRARF</a>), JP Morgan Chase &amp; Company (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/jpm#NYSE">JPM</a>), Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/mufg#NYSE">MUFG</a>) BNP Paribas (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bnpqf#OTC">BNPQF</a>), Citigroup Inc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/c#NYSE">C</a>), DBS Bank Limited, HSBC plc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/hsbc#NYSE">HSBC</a>), Mizuho Financial Group Inc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/mfg#NYSE">MFG</a>) and Standard Chartered plc (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/scbff#OTC">SCBFF</a>) are acting as dealers of the notes alongside the lead issuers.
Shares of Hysan Development were off 1.4% in Hong Kong morning trading.
The financing <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35128718/is-there-a-real-estate-bubble-in-hong-kong-thats-about-to-burst">comes at a hairy time for real estate developers and borrowers in Hong Kong</a>, increasing numbers of whom have defaulted on prior years US dollar debt issuances. At the end of last month, China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) defaulted on its US dollar bonds and some investors fear that Country Garden Holdings Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryy#OTC">CTRYY</a>) may follow suit.
There have been some bright spots lately though. Last week, Sunac China Holdings Limited (NYSE: SNCNF) <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35113705/hong-kong-stocks-gain-some-steam-back-after-citigroup-declares-chinas-cyclical-bottom-is-her" style="color:#0563c1">became the first property developer to successfully restructure its offshore debt</a> when a Hong Kong court granted it permission to reissue $10.2 billion in new debt.

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Property Giant Hysan's Borrowing Surges With Fresh $4 Billion Bond Issuance

Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN Ltd.), Hong Kong&rsquo;s second-largest telecommunications provider, <a href="https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2023/1009/2023100900061.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">issued</a> a profit warning Monday, saying that its earnings had swung into losses as a result of rising interest rates.
HKBD said that it expected to make a HK$1.3 billion ($167 million) loss for the year ending August 2023 vs. a profit of HK$500 million for same period last year. It attributed the big loss to its joint ventures&nbsp;and a rising Hong Kong Interbank Borrowing Rate (HIBOR). HKBD said its borrowing costs are priced at HIBOR plus a fixed margin.
In its 2022 Annual Report, HKBN <a href="https://reg.hkbn.net/WwwCMS/upload/pdf/en/20221111_AnnualReport2022_Eng.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">attributed</a> better financing rates as a helpful offset to its losses incurred by deals with joint venture partners as a result of sluggish local consumption. This year, that situation has reversed as a result of continued hawkishness by the Federal Reserve Bank.
HIBOR has <a href="https://www.hsbc.com.hk/mortgages/tools/hibor-rate/" style="color:#0563c1">surged</a> by over four times in 2023 as rising US interest rates have increased borrowing costs everywhere. Year-to-date, the HIBOR average is 3.95% vs. just 0.77% for the same time last year, according to HSBC plc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/hsbc#NYSE">HSBC</a>).&nbsp;
HIBOR is a daily floating interest rate usually calulated on a weekly basis for external lending&nbsp;purposes. As of October 6, HIBOR was near a 16-year high at 4.85%.
Why It Matters: A high HIBOR is seen as a bearish measure for Hong Kong growth. HIBOR is the standard rate at which borrowing costs are priced in Hong Kong.
The rising HIBOR has put huge pressure on all borrowers and mortgage holders in Hong Kong, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35128718/is-there-a-real-estate-bubble-in-hong-kong-thats-about-to-burst" style="color:#0563c1">who have been ratcheting up more debt over the course of the year as property prices have been in freefall</a>.
Earnings of property developers such as China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>), Country Garden Holdings Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryy#OTC">CTRYY</a>) and Longfor Holdings Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/lgfry#OTC">LGFRY</a>) could be affected by the sharp increase in HIBOR during 2023 as the increased mortgage rates put off new home buyers.
Other companies that could be affected by an increased&nbsp;HIBOR are those with high rates of borrowing such as Swire Pacific Ltd. (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/swray#OTC">SWRAY</a>) and New World Development Co Limited (OTC: NVDLY), both of which <a href="https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/hong-kong-tycoons-race-to-cut-debt-with-8-4-billion-asset-sales-1.1939103" style="color:#0563c1">disposed</a> of assets in June to defray higher borrowing costs. &nbsp;

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High Interest Rates Thwart Leading Hong Kong Broadband Company Earnings

Chinese real estate developers are having some of their worst 12-month periods on record this year, defaulting on billions of debt as they face the new reality of much slower home sales in mainland China.
China&rsquo;s non-financial debt-to-GDP that comprises in large part retail borrowing on properties has surged since the country&rsquo;s boom days, from 132% in 2007 to 285% this year. Property comprises around a third of China&rsquo;s GDP and around 65% of all household assets in China.
So a dwindling real estate market has put pressure on the country&rsquo;s growth, where the World Bank recently cut its forecast from 4.8% to just 4.4% in 2024.
<h3>Plunging Home Prices, Empty Office Space</h3>
In Hong Kong, the situation is potentially even more precarious than it is in neighboring China. The number of people applying for greater than 80% mortgages in Hong Kong has risen sharply this year by over a third, even as properties are going for massive discounts to what they did in prior years&rsquo; sales. &nbsp;
Property prices in the world&rsquo;s least affordable housing market plunged 16% in 2022 and have been dropping further throughout this year. Residential housing prices fell a further 10% in the first half of 2023, while larger apartments over 1,700 square feet in size dropped as much as 22% in value according to <a href="https://www.rvd.gov.hk/doc/tc/hkpr23/HKPR2023%20Full%20Book_TC.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">data</a> from Ratings &amp; Valuation Department.
Sales volumes are still well over 40% below what they were 18 months ago, according to the department, and in some cases up to 70% lower than before.
Despite these declines, the island still remains the world&rsquo;s least affordable to buy or rent property in, according to a recent <a href="http://www.demographia.com/dhi.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">survey</a> by Demographia. That suggests that unless the economy rebounds sharply, property prices have further to fall.
Among commercial real estate developers, headwinds appear even stronger still: vacancy rates for office rentals are hitting all-time highs of 16%, with rents off 5% so far in 2023.
The Midland Price Index, a volume weighted <a href="https://www.midland.com.hk/en/market-insight" style="color:#0563c1">index</a> of the average prices of Hong Kong properties compiled by Midland Realty Limited, has been steadily declining throughout the year. In October, it is 2.2% lower than the month before, while Midland&rsquo;s Confidence Index for the property market also hit a new low this month for 2023.
The lacking demand for office space on the island this week prompted the Hong Kong government to pause on its commercial real estate auctions, which typically provides the local government with funds for expansion.
<h3>Developer Woes Point To Bubble Bursting</h3>
All of this raises the possibility of there being a property bubble in Hong Kong that&rsquo;s soon about to burst. Part of the problem, according to Knight Frank Limited, a property agent, is the huge amount of debt that Hong Kong real estate purchasers are assuming when they buy. That&rsquo;s not likely to help a decline that won&rsquo;t seem to abate.
&ldquo;Under the current market headwinds, sell-offs are set to endure amid weakening purchasing power,&rdquo; wrote analysts at Knight Frank in a recent <a href="https://content.knightfrank.com/research/676/documents/en/hong-kong-monthly-august-2023-10503.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">note</a>.
Hong Kong&rsquo;s biggest listed real estate developers are down sharply on the year as rising defaults, tighter credit conditions and weaker-than-expected economic prospects in China maul their financial statements.
Country Garden Holdings Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryy#OTC">CTRYY</a>) is off 67% this year, while China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) is 80% lower, returning from a trading suspension in August after 17 months due to legal and financial woes.
The contagion has rattled local banks, with China Construction Bank Corporation (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/cichy#OTC">CICHY</a>) 11% lower year-to-date and Bank of China Limited (OTC: BACHY) 5% weaker over the same period. Local lender HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/hsbc#NYSE">HSBC</a>) is higher by 27% for the year as a result of undertaking billions in stock repurchases but is still trading 6% lower than it was 5 years ago.
<h3>Market Intervention Hazards</h3>
The increasingly troubled sector has brought about a sharp sell-off in all Hong Kong stocks this year, not just in developer stocks and banks, as the unknown extent of defaults continue to weigh on investors&rsquo; minds. Year-to-date, the Hang Seng Index is down over 15%.
That has caused some to speculating that the Chinese government&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35067690/china-evergrande-shares-soar-on-trading-resumption-in-hong-kong-sparking-bailout-speculation" style="color:#0563c1" target="_blank">will step in with a bail-out for property developers</a>, similar to the way the US government bailed out automakers such as&nbsp;Ford Motor Co (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/f#NYSE">F</a>)&nbsp;and&nbsp;General Motors Co (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/gm#NYSE">GM</a>)&nbsp;as well as giant financial institutions&nbsp;Morgan Stanley (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ms#NYSE">MS</a>),&nbsp;The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/gs#NYSE">GS</a>),&nbsp;Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bac#NYSE">BAC</a>)&nbsp;and&nbsp;JP Morgan Chase &amp; Co (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/jpm#NYSE">JPM</a>)&nbsp;in the 2008 subprime crisis.
Hong Kong&rsquo;s local government has already tried to work in a range of stimulus policies to revive its beleaguered property market. These include everything from introducing tax credits for buyers to tightening up available supply and even <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3236780/30-companies-pledge-invest-hk30-billion-hong-kong-helping-spur-citys-rise-it-hub" style="color:#0563c1">inducing</a> Chinese companies to invest billions of dollars in an IT Hub on a patch of agrarian farmland that lies between Hong Kong and China in a zone known as the New Territories.
But in China&rsquo;s complex economy, it&rsquo;s not as easy as just pumping in money, the more so in Hong Kong, which has an international component to its real estate scene, maintain market watchers. Market intervention tactics by local government, while stabilizing things a bit, ultimately only made matters messier last year in neighboring China.
The extent of China&rsquo;s overblown real estate prices was muddied by financing from local government financing vehicles (LGFVs), a way for banks and governments to game the real estate market and other asset prices.
LGFVs accounted for over half of land purchases in 2022 vs. just 33% the year before and 17% in 2021, according to data from Rhodium Group. That created a false sense of demand, ultimately crashing prices in areas faster than they would have otherwise fallen.
Rhodium says the LGFV purchasing interventions only made matters worse as government-subsidized property buyers came to form a bedrock of artificial value below much of China&rsquo;s land values in 2022.
Ultimately, these interventions caught up with developers when the music stopped in 2022 and early this year, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/09/34912174/china-evergrande-debt-default-hits-hong-kong-developers-with-doozy-while-chinese-big-tech-ho" style="color:#0563c1">resulting in huge debt defaults such as Evergrande&rsquo;s missed repayments of $30 billion in offshore bonds</a>. China&rsquo;s Ministry of Finance eventually issued a notice for local governments to stop intervening in their property markets using LGFVs.
Further, government stimulus only seems to be showing up how weak the Hong Kong property market actually is. This month, Hong Kong&rsquo;s local government is set to auction off <a href="https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3236806/hong-kong-government-sell-only-1-plot-quarter-putting-revenue-target-us108-billion-land-sale-out?utm_source=cm&amp;utm_medium=txn&amp;utm_campaign=enlz-NOT-Follow&amp;utm_content=20231005_daily5&amp;d=e342e512-a5fc-4414-a8dc-effce3b5e5b2" style="color:#0563c1">just one</a> property, meaning it will end up meeting a maximum of 20% of its targeted auction revenue for the year.
The recent auctions provide a guage of the extent of discounts local developers are demanding to develop new land in Hong Kong.
Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd. (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/suhjy#OTC">SUHJY</a>) recently <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-05/hong-kong-to-pause-selling-commercial-land-as-market-falters?embedded-checkout=true" style="color:#0563c1">won</a> a HK$20 billion Kowloon property for just HK$4.6 billion at a recent auction while consortium of property developers led by Sino Land Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/snlay#OTC">SNLAY</a>) last month won another auction for a property in Kai Tak for a 10% discount, paying just HK$5.3 billion for over 100,000 sq ft of prime Hong Kong development space.

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Is There A Real Estate Bubble In Hong Kong That's About To Burst?

Positive economic data for China growth and the approved restructuring of a major property developer lifted stocks in Hong Kong Thursday in the mid-morning session, although most failed to hold onto the gains in the afternoon.
Hang Seng Index was flat by end of the trading day, just 10 basis points higher at 17,212.43 points.
Citgroup Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/c#NYSE">C</a>) <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-05/citi-raises-china-gdp-forecast-saying-economy-has-bottomed-out?srnd=premium-asia" style="color:#0563c1">raised</a> its growth forecast for China to 5% for 2023 from 4.7% previously, citing expected improved retail sales and industrial production and a turn-around in <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35096939/mid-week-in-china-a-tough-export-climate-more-property-woes-sink-hong-kong-stocks" style="color:#0563c1">export contraction that has plagued the local economy</a>.
&ldquo;The cyclical bottom is here, with all eyes on whether organic demand will pick up amid gathering policy momentum,&rdquo; Citi economist Yu Xiangrong wrote in the bank&rsquo;s report on the world&rsquo;s second-largest economy.
Retailers Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/baba#NYSE">BABA</a>) and Trip.com Group Limited (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/tcom#NASDAQ">TCOM</a>) rose in the morning session but ended around 0.5% lower on the day but JD.com Inc (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/jd#NASDAQ">JD</a>) was up convincingly by 1% on the day.
Chinese retail spending in the first half of the domestic National Golden Week Holiday in China increased 8.3% while domestic tourism revenues have increased 5% from the same year-ago period according to HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/hsbc#NYSE">HSBC</a>). Approximately 900 million trips will be made by travelers during this week&rsquo;s annual 7-day break, China&rsquo;s Ministry of Culture and Tourism said.
Among exporters and industrial stocks, JD Logistics Inc. ended the day 0.7% higher, telco Coolpad Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/chwtf#OTC">CHWTF</a>) leaped 6% and Hong Kong IoT mobile provider SIM Technology Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/simtf#OTC">SIMTF</a>) jumped 3%. &nbsp;
Sunac China Holdings Limited (OTC: SNCNF) became the first Chinese property developer to successfully manage to restructure its debt after a Hong Kong court <a href="https://www.caixinglobal.com/2023-10-05/sunac-wins-court-approval-for-offshore-debt-restructuring-plan-102114126.html" style="color:#0563c1">declared</a> that the company could go ahead with the $10.2 billion debt reorganization. The approval comes on the back of a 98% approval vote by Sunac&rsquo;s creditors two weeks ago. About $5.7 billion of the delinquent bonds are expected to be replaced by new dollar-denominated convertible debt in Sunac.
The developer has fallen to 16th place from 3rd among China&rsquo;s leading developers by total number of developments under management as part of the long-and-winding saga that resulted in a previous default on dollar-denominated bonds in May 2022.
Investors appeared to sigh with relief at the news and snapped up Sunac stock in the Hong Kong session, with the shares ending the day 6.3% higher. Longfor Group Holdings Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/lgfry#OTC">LGFRY</a>) traders hopped on for the ride, rising 1.9%. China Aoyuan Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/caoyf#OTC">CAOYF</a>) and China Evergrande Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>), which still remain beset by debt uncertainty, declined however, diving 2.2% and 11%, respectively.

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Hong Kong Stocks Gain Some Steam Back After Citigroup Declares China's "Cyclical Bottom Is Here"

Fears of an increasingly tough climate for Chinese exporters and more malaise in the property market sent Hong Kong shares trading lower Wednesday. After trying to rise higher in the morning, the Hang Seng Index finished Wednesday 0.8% down at 17,195.84.
The South China Morning Post <a href="https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3236277/chinas-exporters-navigate-bumpy-road-back-overseas-amid-turbulent-economic-recovery?module=lead_hero_story&amp;pgtype=homepage" style="color:#0563c1">reported</a> that China&rsquo;s exporters are &ldquo;navigating a bumpy road&rdquo; towards increasing sales overseas, particularly in the US. Chinese exports fell 8.8% from the previous year in August while shipments to the US were 9.5% lower, falling for the 13th consecutive month, the paper reported. As such, many Chinese exporters are now eyeing other destinations across South East Asia in which to base operations. &nbsp;
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Tuesday that ongoing disruptions to global trade, prompted by political tensions created as a result of the war in Ukraine and an increasing d&eacute;tente between the US and China could lead to price volatility in imports and exports for global goods, food shortages and make green energy solutions more costly to implement.
Exporter-related shares Fosun International Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/fosuf#OTC">FOSUF</a>), Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Limited, PetroChina Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/pccyf#OTC">PCCYF</a>), Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/baba#NYSE">BABA</a>) and CMOC Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/cmclf#OTC">CMCLF</a>) were all down between 1-2% in Hong Kong trading Wednesday. EV makers were also hit hard, as BYD Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/byddy#OTC">BYDDY</a>) fell 3% while Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/li#NASDAQ">LI</a>) and NIO Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/nio#NYSE">NIO</a>) dipped over 1% each.
The Chinese-language business daily Caixin <a href="https://www.caixinglobal.com/2023-10-03/chinas-real-estate-market-gets-some-relief-in-september-on-policy-changes-102113958.html" style="color:#0563c1">reported</a> Wednesday that real estate sales in China from the country&rsquo;s 100 largest developers were down 29.9% year-on-year in September.
According to Caixin, a report by CRIC, one of the country&rsquo;s largest real estate securities dealers, said that &ldquo;purchasing power is still insufficient&rdquo; and that confidence still remains very low among property investors despite recent efforts by the Chinese government to stimulate demand. The supply of property available in China&rsquo;s 30 largest cities in September was 17% higher than the month before, according to CRIC.
While there was some rebound in sales off the August lows in China&rsquo;s first and second-tier cities, additional incentives will need to be put in place in order to make sure the situation doesn&rsquo;t worsen still, the report said.
According to CS Auctioneers Ltd., a property auction house, in Hong Kong foreclosed homes on sale in September have <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-03/hong-kong-banks-struggle-to-sell-foreclosed-homes-even-at-20-discount?srnd=premium-asia" style="color:#0563c1">increased</a> by 36% from a year-ago, which is the highest since the end of the subprime crisis in 2009. Property prices are now down by 17% since peaking two years ago, while new mortgages applying for an 80% or higher debt ratio have risen to over a third vs. 14% in 2021.
China SCE Group Holdings Ltd. tumbled 5% on the day, erasing all its morning gains after it announced a default on $1.8 billion of offshore bonds, which have now been suspended from trading. Meanwhile, China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) plunged 12% on profit-taking by traders <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35067690/china-evergrande-shares-soar-on-trading-resumption-in-hong-kong-sparking-bailout-speculation" style="color:#0563c1">after notching up speculative gains on trading resumption Tuesday</a>. CIFI Holdings (Group) Co., Ltd., declined into loss-making territory for the second straight day, finishing down 1.7% after missing its latest earnings expectations Tuesday, reversing profits and now making losses.

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Mid-Week In China: A Tough Export Climate & More Property Woes Sink Hong Kong Stocks

China SCE Group Holdings Ltd. became the latest in a line of Chinese property developers to default on its debt Wednesday, after the company <a href="https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2023/1004/2023100400413.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">said</a> that it could not meet interest and principal payments for up to $1.8 billion in senior offshore notes. The bonds were suspended from trading upon the announcement.
The company was once <a href="https://www.sce-re.com/en/mobile/news19-3199.html" style="color:#0563c1">ranked</a> 6th in a 2020 survey among China&rsquo;s most-trusted property brands.
SCE Group indicated in a statement that it may not be able to meet its other obligations in the near future too. The company said that since the start of 2022 it has met repaid about $1.6 billion in loan notes but that it did not have $60 million of cash on hand to make the payments now due on some of its senior debt. SCE Group cited sluggish demand for new developments as the reason for the cash-flow squeeze.
&ldquo;Entering the second quarter of 2023, the Group&rsquo;s sales declined continuously, and its liquidity position became increasingly tight and the pressure to pay off its offshore debts continued to increase. Despite the Group&rsquo;s best efforts, the Group&rsquo;s liquid cash and bank deposits may not be sufficient to meet its current and future obligations,&rdquo; SCE Group said in a statement.
The notes that have been suspended from trading comprise four tranches of debt maturing in 2024 to 2026. $500 million of 7.375% senior notes due April 2024, $450 million of 5.95% senior notes due September 2024, $500 million of senior notes due May 2025 and $350 million of 6% February 2026 senior notes were all suspended from trading.
The multi-billion dollar debt default echoes a similar default by China&rsquo;s fourth-largest developer China Evergrande Group Ltd (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) last week when the company&rsquo;s Hengdu Real Estate Co Ltd. subsidiary <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/09/34912174/china-evergrande-debt-default-hits-hong-kong-developers-with-doozy-while-chinese-big-tech-ho" style="color:#0563c1">said that it could not repay principle and interest on $537 million of offshore debt</a>. That followed a <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/15/investing/sino-ocean-china-property-debt-intl-hnk/index.html" style="color:#0563c1">similar</a> default on US dollar debt by major developer Sino Ocean Group Holding Co Ltd. in mid-September. &nbsp;
The increasingly troubled sector has brought about a sharp sell-off in Hong Kong stocks this year as the unknown extent of defaults continue to weigh on investors&rsquo; minds.
Some are speculating that the Chinese government <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/10/35067690/china-evergrande-shares-soar-on-trading-resumption-in-hong-kong-sparking-bailout-speculation" style="color:#0563c1">will step in with a bail-out for property developers</a>, similar to the way the US government bailed out automakers such as Ford Motor Co (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/f#NYSE">F</a>) and General Motors Co (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/gm#NYSE">GM</a>) as well as giant financial institutions Morgan Stanley (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ms#NYSE">MS</a>), The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/gs#NYSE">GS</a>), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bac#NYSE">BAC</a>) and JP Morgan Chase &amp; Co (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/jpm#NYSE">JPM</a>) in the 2008 subprime crisis.
The company&#39;s stock is down nearly 80% year-to-date.&nbsp;Shares in SCE Group ended the day 5% lower.&nbsp;

One Of China's Most Trusted Real Estate Brands Defaults On Billions In Offshore Bonds

Shares of Hong Kong property developer China Evergrande Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) surged after it resumed trading in Hong Kong Tuesday morning, buoyed by speculative bets in an otherwise down market. The company was trading up 15% mid-morning at HK$0.37, after touching highs of HK$0.45 per share on the open.
China Evergrande applied to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to resume trading Monday night, saying that there was no material information it had to disclose other than what has been reported in the media already.
Evergrande&rsquo;s real estate subsidiary China Evergrande Property Services Group Ltd also resumed trading Tuesday. After popping up 20% the shares had fallen back by 3% mid-morning in Hong Kong. &nbsp;
Last week&rsquo;s suspension from trading was Evergrande&rsquo;s second suspension in an 18-month period. In August, shares in the property giant resumed trading on the Hang Seng after a 17-month suspension as a result of the company&rsquo;s creditor problems.
Analysts cautioned that the big price pop was not based on any fundamental news but rather on speculators driving up the price of the shares.
&ldquo;Looks like the gains are driven by speculative money,&rdquo;&nbsp;Willer Chen, senior research analyst at Forsyth Barr Asia Ltd, told Bloomberg. &ldquo;With this volatility, I really don&rsquo;t know if there&rsquo;s any chance for any proper investor to make money on this name.&rdquo;
Around the market, traders chimed in with similar observations.
&ldquo;Its either pump and dump or insider trading. Is a bail out coming?&rdquo; <a href="https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3236575/shares-evergrande-and-its-property-unit-jump-hong-kong-they-resume-trading-after-confirming-chairman?commentID=72d32ece-e88e-4bc5-a204-553dc5f8f0f1&amp;module=c3po&amp;pgtype=article&amp;d=e342e512-a5fc-4414-a8dc-effce3b5e5b2#comments" style="color:#0563c1">observed</a> one market watcher at the South China Morning Post website.
Speculation as to whether the Chinese government will step in to bail out beleaguered property firms has risen recently around trading desks since 80% of Chinese households currently invest around a third of their savings in domestic property. Economists point out that while a bailout would be positive for shares of Chinese property developers, it would also amp up the risk-on appetite of businesses in the world&rsquo;s second-largest economy. The Chinese government <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-23/china-has-501-billion-bail-out-ammunition-for-property-mess" style="color:#0563c1">reportedly</a> has around $500 billion on hand to assist developers if required.
China Evergrande is China&rsquo;s fourth-largest property developer and widely viewed right now as a significant proxy for the Chinese real estate market, which is suffering from a credit rout the full extent of which is little-understood.
Multi-billion-dollar bond defaults have made for volatile market activity in Evergrande so far over the past month. Evergrande was initially trading at HK$1.65 when it was <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-21/china-evergrande-and-its-units-suspend-trading-in-hong-kong-l0zzzupq" style="color:#0563c1">suspended</a> in March 2022. The shares then resumed trading in August this year at HK$0.35, rising quickly to around HK$0.75. After that, Evergrande shares <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/09/34912174/china-evergrande-debt-default-hits-hong-kong-developers-with-doozy-while-chinese-big-tech-ho" style="color:#0563c1">fell back sharply after the company missed more payment deadlines for principle and interest notes</a>. Today&rsquo;s trading activity represents the latest chapter in the embattled developer&rsquo;s ongoing fight for its life.
Evergrande&rsquo;s EV maker subsidiary China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group Ltd was not allowed to resume trading.
The chairman of China Evergrande is currently under police surveillance in China, while its former CEO and former CFO have been questioned by police as a result of an investigation into practices at the company&rsquo;s wealth management division.
Part of the problem that investors have in assessing the likelihood of Evergrande&rsquo;s prospects going forward is that its future is highly <a href="https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3235027/china-evergrande-debt-restructuring-fate-hands-secretive-group-holdout-creditors-who-need-be-won" style="color:#0563c1">contingent</a> on the decision reached by a group of secret creditors who hold $15 billion of offshore bonds.
The creditors, who have been broadly labelled thus far only as &ldquo;Class C&rdquo; creditors by Evergrande, were due to meet with the company on September 25 to try and reach an agreement to restructure the company&rsquo;s delinquent debt after Chinese authorities prevented it from issuing additional convertible debt. Convertible debt would have allowed Evergrande to restructure a sizeable portion of its $328 billion in liabilities into new shares of common stock, but was taken off the table as an option by regulators.
Evergrande <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/09/34869281/china-property-market-woes-spark-fears-of-2008-style-global-recession-led-by-china-slump" style="color:#0563c1">abruptly cancelled the crucial creditor meeting</a> just days before it was scheduled to go ahead, sending its shares into freefall. Last week, the shares were suspended from trading before resuming trading Tuesday morning.
The story underlines the frequently opaque nature of China real estate debt issuances, which has made investors in Hong Kong and China nervous about the underlying state of the domestic real estate market.
Evergrande&rsquo;s bullish performance stood out in an otherwise down market, with incumbents Country Garden Holdings Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryy#OTC">CTRYY</a>) off 4.4% and Longfor Group Holdings Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/lngpf#OTC">LNGPF</a>) 5% lower in the morning session. Sunac China Holdings Limited plunged 12%.
Hong Kong&rsquo;s Hang Seng Index was lower 3% at 17,278 points Tuesday morning, while China&rsquo;s CSI 300 Index was flat at 3,690 points.

LNGPF

China Evergrande Shares Soar On Trading Resumption In Hong Kong, Sparking Bailout Speculation

Markets are bouncing back after days of pronounced volatility, aided by the slowdown in Treasury yields and Thursday&#8217;s dip in the value of the dollar.
Newly released data confirmed that U.S. economic growth was at an annualized rate of 2.1% in Q2, while initial jobless claims have held near their over-eight-month low, defying<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/government/23/09/34977155/us-economy-grows-by-2-1-in-q2-lower-than-expected-initial-claims-signal-tight-job-market"> expectations of a more significant increase.</a>
The surge in risk appetite is fueling solid gains in tech stocks and Bitcoin (CRYPTO: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/btc/usd">BTC</a>) during the trading sessions. The cryptocurrency has gained 2.9% by midday, marking its strongest session in September.
Chart of The Day: Bitcoin&#8217;s Daily Returns In September
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1024" height="745" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/editorial.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/28123223/BTCUSD_2023-09-28_18-32-09_d5f54-1024x745.png" alt="" class="wp-image-114424" srcset="https://s3.amazonaws.com/editorial.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/28123223/BTCUSD_2023-09-28_18-32-09_d5f54-1024x745.png 1024w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/editorial.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/28123223/BTCUSD_2023-09-28_18-32-09_d5f54-300x218.png 300w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/editorial.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/28123223/BTCUSD_2023-09-28_18-32-09_d5f54-768x559.png 768w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/editorial.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/28123223/BTCUSD_2023-09-28_18-32-09_d5f54.png 1484w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>
Cues From Thursday&#8217;s Trading:
Major averages were all in the green on Thursday. The S&amp;P 500 rose 0.6%, the Dow gained 0.5%, the Russell 2000 soared 1% and the Nasdaq 1000 outperformed, rising 1.1%
 US Index Performance On Tuesday
<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"> 
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Index </td>
<td>Performance (+/-)</td>
<td>Value</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Nasdaq 100</td>
<td>+1.12%</td>
<td>14,744.62</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>S&amp;P 500 Index</td>
<td>+0.54%</td>
<td>4,307.28</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Dow Industrials</td>
<td>+0.46%</td>
<td>33,706.37</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Russell 2000</td>
<td>+1.03%</td>
<td>1,797.29</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</figure>
Thursday&#8217;s&nbsp;Trading In Major US&nbsp;Equity ETFs
<ul>
<li>The SPDR S&amp;P 500 ETF Trust&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SPY#NYSE">SPY</a>) was 0.7% higher to&nbsp;$429.14</li>
<li>The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/DIA#NYSE">DIA</a>) rose 0.46% to $336.97&nbsp;</li>
<li>The Invesco QQQ Trust&nbsp;(NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/QQQ#NASDAQ">QQQ</a>) soared 1.1% to $358.97, according to <a href="https://benzinga.grsm.io/register174">Benzinga Pro data.</a></li>
</ul>
Looking at S&amp;P 500&#8217;s sector ETFs:
<ul>
<li>The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/XLC#NYSE">XLC</a>) was the outperformer, up by 1.3%. The Materials&nbsp;Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/XLB#NYSE">XLB</a>) and the Consumer Discretionary&nbsp;Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/XLY#NYSE">XLY</a>) also showed substantial gains, both up by 1.1%. </li>
<li>The Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/XLU#NYSE">XLU</a>) was the laggard, down 1.8%.</li>
</ul>
Latest Economic Data:
The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the U.S. economy saw a 2.1% annualized growth rate in the second quarter of 2023. This figure remained in line with the second estimate but marked a slight dip from the upwardly revised 2.2% growth witnessed in the first quarter.
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee delivered dovish remarks, stating that inflation could reach the target soon, without further policy tightening and only a modest slowdown in growth. 
Fed Governor Lisa Cook will speak at 3 p.m. EDT and Fed Chair Jerome Powell at 4 p.m. EDT.
The Labor Department reported 204,000 new jobless claims for the week ending Sept. 23, marking a slight uptick from the previous week's nine-month low of 202,000. The marginal rise fell short of expectations, as economists had anticipated an increase to 215,000.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-trade-futures">How To Trade Futures</a>
Stocks In Focus:
<ul>
<li>Jabil, Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/JBL#NYSE">JBL</a>) rose over 15% after reporting better-than-expected earnings last quarter. </li>
<li>Other companies reacting to their earnings reports include Accenture plc (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ACN#NYSE">ACN</a>), down 5% on a revenue miss, CarMax Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/KMX#NYSE">KMX</a>) down over 10%. </li>
<li>Peloton Interactive, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PTON#NASDAQ">PTON</a>) jumped over 6% after it signed a five-year deal with Lululemon Athletica, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/LULU#NASDAQ">LULU</a>).</li>
<li>Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/WDAY#NASDAQ">WDAY</a>) plunged nearly 10% after the cloud service provider reduced its subscription revenue growth guidance at an investor presentation.</li>
<li>Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MU#NASDAQ">MU</a>) declined nearly 4% after the chipmaker issued lackluster guidance.</li>
<li>GameStop Corp. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GME#NYSE">GME</a>) had a volatile session, rising as much as 10% after the company announced Ryan Cohen as CEO, effective immediately, only to subsequently fall by 1.4%. </li>
<li>Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MARA#NASDAQ">MARA</a>) rose over 8% as the crypto market soared. </li>
<li>Companies reporting after the close include Nike, Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NKE#NYSE">NKE</a>) and BlackBerry Ltd. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/BB#NYSE">BB</a>).</li>
</ul>
Commodities, Bonds, Other Global Equity Markets:
Crude oil fell 1.2%, with a barrel of WTI-grade crude trading at $91. The United States Oil Fund&nbsp;ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/USO#NYSE">USO</a>) was 0.9% lower to $82.19.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Treasury yields were flat, with the 10-year yield stable at 4.62% and the 30-year yield up by 1 basis point to 4.73%%. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TLT#NYSE">TLT</a>) was 0.3% lower for the day. 
The dollar fell, with the U.S. dollar index, which is tracked by the&nbsp;Invesco DB USD Index Bullish Fund ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/UUP#NYSE">UUP</a>), down 0.5%. The EUR/USD pair, which is tracked by the Invesco CurrecyShares Euro Currency Trust (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/FXE#NYSE">FXE</a>),&nbsp;was 0.6% higher to 1.0571.
European equity indices closed in the green. The SPDR DJ Euro STOXX 50 ETF&nbsp;&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/FEZ#NYSE">FEZ</a>) rose 1.5%.&nbsp;
Gold edged 0.6% down&nbsp;to $1,864/oz, while silver held steady at $22.52. 
Staff writer Piero Cingari updated this report midday Thursday.&nbsp;
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/23/09/34964133/oil-to-300-economist-peter-schiff-says-central-bank-excesses-could-trigger-a-bull-r">Oil To $300? Economist Peter Schiff Says Central Bank Excesses Could Trigger A Bull Run That &#8216;Won&#8217;t End&#8217;</a>
Photo: Shutterstock

Earnings

Federal Reserve

Movers

$BTC

AAPL

APOG

CHPT

SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust

DOCU

GIII

LULU

MARA

PATH

PTON

SAIC

SMAR

SMTC

SWBI

iShares Trust Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond Fund

PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish Fund

WDAY

Select Sector SPDR-Consumer Discretionary

ZUMZ

Stocks Rebound As Dollar, Treasury Yields Retreat; Bitcoin Targets Best September Session: What's Driving Markets Thursday?

Hong Kong and China exchanges continue to face headwinds from cash-strapped property developers even as the domestic Chinese economy goes into a traditionally bumper holiday week.
Country Garden Holdings Co Ltd (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryf#OTC">CTRYF</a>), the country&rsquo;s largest developer, was down 2% while embattled China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>), which cancelled a creditor&rsquo;s meeting and defaulted on onshore debt earlier this week, was suspended from trading in Hong Kong after falling 18% Wednesday. China Evergrande was just relisted on August 28 after a previous 17-month suspension. Sunac China Holdings Limited, which this month <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/m/98c3082d-9863-3a4d-b4b9-23fcde55c34f/a-chinese-property-developer.html" style="color:#0563c1">successfully</a> managed to restructure its debt amid the country&rsquo;s growing property credit crisis, bucked the trend, up 1%.
China Evergrande&rsquo;s electric vehicle and wealth management units have also been suspended from trading in China. The company&rsquo;s founder and Chairman Hui Ka Yan has been placed under residential surveillance, according to China business daily Caixin. Residential surveillance is a type of home detention that police in China have the authority to impose on individuals connected to ongoing investigations, and lasts for a period up to six months.
&ldquo;As a standalone company Evergrande is not going to bring down the Chinese economy. But Xi Jinping and his colleagues have to figure out &lsquo;am I going to bailout private companies who have overborrowed their money or am I going to let them go down?&rsquo;&rdquo; Dennis Unkovik, an international real estate and M&amp;A lawyer with a specialization in China deals, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akQ_proTx8A" style="color:#0563c1">told</a> CNBC this week. Unkovic added that China&rsquo;s property market made up around 30% of the domestic Chinese economy.
There are signs that some of this is getting underway. The Chinese government is reversing course on a decades-old strategy of limiting foreign capital and now pursuing measures to attract more investors. It plans to raise the current 30% foreign ownership cap on stocks in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, according to national reports. Beijing is home to mostly State-Owned Enterprise stocks and Shanghai serves as the base for major domestic listings, whereas Shenzhen is where most of China&rsquo;s tech upstarts are listed.
<h3>Golden Opportunity Week?</h3>
At the same time as it&nbsp;eases foreign investor restrictions, Chinese government officials are encouraging domestic travellers to travel within China to boost the domestic economy&#39;s strength&nbsp;for the forthcoming national holiday period and&nbsp;through the rest of the year. Measures such as lifting inter-province toll-way fares and incentivising travel operators to offer discounted group tours are being put into full effect, say local sources.
Hopes that a national holiday from October 1 until October 7 in China can provide the catalyst for consumer spending hung in the air a little Thursday among traders in Hong Kong and China, Bloomberg <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-27/china-traders-seek-golden-week-rebound-in-travel-food-after-property-selloff?srnd=premium-asia" style="color:#0563c1">reported</a>. Still, consumer and travel stocks remained beaten-down by the property malaise.
Air China Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/airyy#OTC">AIRYY</a>) was 1.13% lower, extending nearly 30% year-to-date declines, while Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/cpcay#OTC">CPCAY</a>) was down just shy of 1%. Trip.com Group Limited, one of China&rsquo;s largest online booking agents, was dropping 1.6%.
Golden Week, a week-long national holiday in China since 2000, traditionally boosts travel, accommodation bookings and consumer spending going into the latter half of the year. It is also a proxy for increased property spending as investors attend trade fairs at this time of year to snap-up new home builds, a trend that looks to be blighted by the current malaise in the sector.
The number of domestic holidaymakers has increased more than 3&mdash;fold to around a quarter of China&rsquo;s 1.5 billion population since the holidays began.
Over 21 million passengers are expected to take flights with a further 23 million already having booked train journeys, according to local reports. Hotels have also seen a bump in extended stays of 6- to 8-night stays among over a third of all travelers, according to reports.
&ldquo;Certainly the recovery is very consumer-focused,&rdquo; Jonathan Garner, Chief Asia and Emerging Markets Strategist for Morgan Stanley told Bloomberg TV recently.
&ldquo;We were not really expecting property or construction to contribute to recovery this year. But the consumer is extremely strong.&rdquo;
Despite the property mailaise and prospects of a national bailout for developers and financial institutions, investment managers in the region are attracted to deep discounts in the consumer and tech sector in China where there is more international exposure and where the Chinese government is focusing its efforts to ramp up investment.
Chinese stocks such as Alibaba, Inc (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/baba#NYSE">BABA</a>), Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bidu#NASDAQ">BIDU</a>) and BYD Company Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/byddf#OTC">BYDDF</a>), with significant international focus and fairer valuations in particular are gaining attention.
Macau casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/gxyef#OTC">GXYEF</a>) was 4.5% lower but trading notes indicated that it might be a stock to watch if the Golden Week festivities saw an influx of gamblers come back to the island.
Other investment managers are echoing a tentatively bullish vibes for China consumer stocks going into the final quarter of the year.
China exposure appears to be &ldquo;ridiculously cheap&rdquo;, Alberta investment Management Corp CEO Evan Siddle told an industry conference this week.
&ldquo;If you can find opportunities to participate in the growth in China, without actually being in China, those are potential mispricing opportunities,&rdquo; said Siddle.

Travel

AIRYY

BIDU

BYDDF

CPCAY

GXYEF

China Investors Look For Silver Lining During National Golden Week To Boost Consumer Spending Amid Country's Property Turmoil

Shares of crisis-hit&nbsp;China Evergrande Group&nbsp;(OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) have been suspended in Hong Kong amid reports that its chairman has been under police surveillance, marking another low for the heavily indebted Chinese property giant, which defaulted in 2021, triggering China&#39;s current real estate market crisis.
Following Evergrande&#39;s inability to repay investors, Chinese authorities have taken certain employees from the company&#39;s wealth management&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/government/23/09/34681677/chinas-embattled-property-developer-evergrande-falls-in-deeper-pit-police-detains-wealth-management" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">division into custody</a>.
On Wednesday, Bloomberg News&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-27/evergrande-s-billionaire-chairman-hui-is-under-police-surveillance?sref=TBDibEcD" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;that the firm&#39;s founder, Hui Ka Yan, had been taken away by police this month and was monitored at a designated location.
The company faces an October 30 hearing at a Hong Kong court on a winding-up petition, which could potentially force it into liquidation.
Earlier this month, Evergrande&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2023/0922/2023092201562.pdf" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">postponed</a>&nbsp;a scheduled debt restructuring meeting with its creditors.&nbsp;
In an official filing, the company cited disappointing sales figures since announcing a debt restructuring plan in March.
As such, Evergrande &quot;considers it necessary to re-assess the terms of the proposed restructuring to meet the company&#39;s objective situation and the demand of the creditors.&quot;
A Bloomberg Intelligence index tracking Chinese real estate developers&#39; stocks has declined by 3.5%, reaching its lowest point since 2011. Homebuyer confidence continues to appear vulnerable as we approach a crucial holiday sales season, which will serve as a litmus test for the impact of recently introduced stimulus measures.
Evergrande shares last closed at 32 Hong Kong cents on Wednesday.
Evergrande&#39;s shares have experienced suspensions before. In March of the previous year, trading halted, only to resume on August 28 following a 17-month gap.
The company&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2023/0926/2023092601483.pdf" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">reported</a>&nbsp;a loss attributable to shareholders of 33 billion yuan ($4.15 billion) for the six months ended June. Operating loss stood at 11.72 billion yuan, down from 39.36 billion in the first half of 2022.
Hui, once ranked as the second-wealthiest individual in Asia, witnessed a significant decline in his fortune as his real estate empire faced hardships.&nbsp;
As per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Hui&#39;s current net worth stands at approximately $1.8 billion, a sharp contrast to the $42 billion he possessed in 2017.

Legal

Chinese Property Giant Evergrande Stock Halts Trading Amid Mounting Woes

China Evergrande Group (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/EGRNF#OTC">EGRNF</a>) shares have been suspended from trading in Hong Kong stock exchange following reports that its chairman is now under surveillance.
What Happened: Hong Kong&#8217;s exchange announced the suspension of Evergrande&#8217;s shares. This news comes in the wake of a Bloomberg report stating that the chairman of the troubled Chinese property developer has been placed under surveillance, CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/28/chinas-evergrande-shares-suspended-in-hong-kong-.html">reported</a>.
This is not the first time Evergrande&#8217;s shares have seen a halt in trading. In March last year, trading was suspended and only resumed on Aug. 28 after a 17-month hiatus.
See Also:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/09/34881454/tax-cuts-from-the-bush-and-trump-eras-have-cost-the-government-10-trillion-it-now-owes?itm_source=parsely-api" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tax Cuts From The Bush And Trump Eras Have Cost The Government $10 Trillion It Now Owes</a>
Evergrande reported a loss of 33 billion yuan ($4.15 billion) to shareholders for the six months ending in June, which it disclosed on Wednesday. The company also reported an operating loss of 11.72 billion yuan ($1.6 billion) down from 39.36 billion yuan ($5.42 billion) in the first half of 2022.
Earlier this month, Evergrande postponed&nbsp;a debt restructuring meeting with&nbsp;creditors due to underperforming sales&nbsp;since its March debt restructuring&nbsp;announcement. Owing to an investigation into its subsidiary Hengda Real Estate, Evergrande&nbsp;was unable to issue new&nbsp;notes under its debt restructuring&nbsp;plan.
A week after the detention of several employees at Evergrande&#8217;s wealth management unit, Reuters reported that Evergrande&#8217;s unit is now under scrutiny by China&#8217;s&nbsp;securities regulator for suspected violation&nbsp;of information disclosure rules.
Why It Matters: Evergrande&#8217;s ongoing financial turmoil continues to send shockwaves through China&#8217;s property sector. The company <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/penny-stocks/23/09/34912174/china-evergrande-debt-default-hits-hong-kong-developers-with-doozy-while-chinese-big-tech-ho">missed another loan payment</a> deadline earlier this week, leading to further uncertainty. Its CEO was reportedly arrested, and a crucial meeting with creditors about offshore bond repayments was canceled. 
The company&#8217;s Hengdu Real Estate Group Co. Ltd. subsidiary is set to miss 4 billion yuan ($537 million) in repayments on its three-year 5.8% interest bonds. The ongoing credit troubles at Hengdu also led to Chinese regulators vetoing Evergrande&#8217;s proposal to offer offshore bondholders equity securities as an alternative to delinquent bonds. The company&#8217;s recent losses and the current investigation into its chairman add to the mounting issues facing Evergrande, highlighting the gravity of the situation.
Read Next: If you don't take a look, you'll miss out: The list of startups you can invest in is here. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/alternative-investments/startups">Click here to take the leap into</a> the world of startup investing.
Photo Courtesy: hxdbzxy On Shutterstock.com
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Media

China Evergrande Shares Suspended In Hong Kong Amid Chairman Surveillance Reports

Turbulence in China&rsquo;s property sector continued to weigh on shares in Hong Kong Tuesday after China Evergrande Group (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-25/evergrande-liquidation-risk-rises-after-creditor-meet-scrapped?srnd=premium-asia" style="color:#0563c1">missed</a> another loan payment deadline and the company&rsquo;s CEO was reportedly arrested by police.
After cancelling a scheduled meeting with creditors over its offshore bond repayments Monday morning, Evergrande said later in the day that its Hengdu Real Estate Group Co. Ltd. subsidiary would miss 4 billion yuan ($537 million) in principle and interest repayments on its three-year 5.8% interest bonds. Hengdu said it would enter into talks with creditors to delay the repayment date.
For its offshore debt, Evergrande had <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-25/evergrande-liquidation-risk-rises-after-creditor-meet-scrapped" style="color:#0563c1">hoped</a> to restructure $30 billion of bonds into convertible debt but was unable to satisfy Chinese regulators that it should be able to issue new debt as a result of the credit troubles at Hengdu. Specifically, the company said that the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the National Development and Reform Commission had vetoed a proposal by the company to offer offshore bondholders equity securities in Evergrande to replace the delinquent bonds as a result of an ongoing investigation into Hengdu. &nbsp;&nbsp;
China&rsquo;s largest financial daily Caixin <a href="https://www.caixinglobal.com/2023-09-25/exclusive-former-evergrande-ceo-and-cfo-face-probe-sources-say-102112234.html" style="color:#0563c1">reported</a> that Xia Haijun and Pan Darong, the former chief executive and chief financial officer of Evergrande respectively, had been detained by police Monday as part of an investigation into the company&rsquo;s present financial woes and into a scandal surrounding the group&rsquo;s bank deposits which forced them to resign a year ago.
Shares in China Evergrand continued to fall 7%, while Monday&rsquo;s biggest property faller, China Aoyuan Group Ltd., was 10% lower in Tuesday morning trading in Hong Kong.
Fears of Evergrande&rsquo;s credit tumult spilling over into China&rsquo;s Country Garden Holdings Ltd. (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryf#OTC">CTRYF</a>) continued to weigh on China&rsquo;s largest property developer after Country Gardens stated in its latest earnings report that it may have to default on existing debt.
Country Garden was down 3% in Tuesday morning trading, extending the previous day&rsquo;s losses.
Junk dollar notes, Chinese property junk bonds, were flat Tuesday morning after tumbling sharply in recent days. Ping An Real Estate&rsquo;s 2.75% 2024 note was the worst off Monday, down 7.2% by the end of the day.
<h3>Tech Strength Holding Out</h3>
While there is a squeeze among traditional real estate and finance companies, capital raising remains robust among China tech companies which were holding up Tuesday despite the rout in property stocks.
Search incumbent Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/bidu#NASDAQ">BIDU</a>) was up 1% in morning trading while mobile tech Tencent Holdings Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/tcehy#OTC">TCEHY</a>) was slightly lower after being hit 2% in the big sell-off among Hong Kong stocks Monday.
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/baba#NYSE">BABA</a>) was 0.25% stronger on the day paring losses from Monday&rsquo;s sell-off. The company&rsquo;s stock spiked over 5% Friday when it announced a spin-off of its Cainiao Network Technology Ltd. subsidiary. Alibaba <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-22/alibaba-s-cainiao-plans-to-file-for-1-billion-plus-hk-ipo-soon" style="color:#0563c1">said</a> it aims to eliminate the conglomerate discount its shares trade at and raise $1 billion by selling Cainiao in an IPO.
With Alibaba&rsquo;s shares off 10% year-to-date some analysts are forecasting a new bull market in the Shenzhen-based tech giant&rsquo;s stock going forward.
&ldquo;A big chunk of the concern [for investors in Alibaba] has been the uncertainty towards the overall China macro. We are still seeing the macro situation still being a bit fluctuating month over month,&rdquo; Macquarie analyst Ellie Jiang <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z0z96J5XPQ" style="color:#0563c1">told</a> CNBC recently.
&ldquo;At the same time Baba is catching up the growth against the industry. So as long as Alibaba continues to offer that kind of growth against the industry this offers investors the foundation to rebuild a level of confidence into the stock.&rdquo;
EV maker NIO (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/nio#NYSE">NIO</a>) completed an additional $1 billion convertible debt financing Tuesday. In US markets, NIO shares suffered a temporary dip Monday morning on <a href="https://investorplace.com/2023/09/nio-stock-alert-the-3-billion-reason-nio-is-down-today/" style="color:#0563c1">rumors</a> that the company may need to raise an additional $3 billion of debt. The shares recovered after NIO issued a statement <a href="https://ir.nio.com/news-events/news-releases/news-release-details/nio-inc-responds-market-speculations" style="color:#0563c1">saying</a> that other than the completed $1 billion convertible debt offering it &ldquo;has no reportable capital raising activity, other than the recent convertible notes offering.&rdquo; NIO ended the day down 2%.
While property markets and consumer stocks remain a concern for investors in Hong Kong and China, tech companies continue to raise increasing amounts of money in the property-led credit malaise. A lot of this has to do with the Chinese government&rsquo;s mandate to ramp up funding and growth in the sector at a previously unprecedented pace, Templeton global investor Mark Mobius <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/23/09/34853687/mark-mobius-advises-cutting-back-on-chinese-consumer-stocks-for-this-sector-amid-xi" style="color:#0563c1">said</a> in comments Monday on Fox Business.
Mobius elaborated that the bulk of China&rsquo;s $41 billion in IPOs during 2023 were in tech stocks. &ldquo;It appears that China wants to have more and more investment, but with a very, very specific goal, and that too in technology stocks,&rdquo; he said.

TCEHY

China Evergrande Debt Default Hits Hong Kong Developers With Doozy While Chinese Big Tech Holds Firm

Continued troubles in the real estate sector in China are scaring investors in Hong Kong and leading to talks of a potential China property-led global market rout.
Markets in Hong Kong and China were sharply down Monday on news that the mainland&rsquo;s fourth-largest property developer cancelled a creditor&rsquo;s meeting to discuss its debt repayments. Hang Seng Index was 1.8% lower at 17,739 after morning trading while China&rsquo;s CSI 300 Index was off 0.7%.
China Evergrande Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>), the beleaguered Chinese property developer, said Friday that it was cancelling a creditor meeting scheduled early this week. <a href="https://doc.irasia.com/listco/hk/evergrande/announcement/a230922.pdf" style="color:#0563c1">It said that</a> &ldquo;sales had not been as expected&rdquo;.
The announcement is the latest in a series of scandals to hit the Chinese financial behemoth. Mid-September, the domestic regulator <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Markets/China-debt-crunch/Evergrande-s-life-insurance-arm-taken-over-by-new-state-owned-vehicle" style="color:#0563c1">approved</a> a 50% sale of its insurance business China Evergrande Life into a special purpose vehicle owned by the Chinese state to free up cash. Then last week, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-66840012" style="color:#0563c1">staff in the company&rsquo;s wealth management division</a> were detained by Shenzhen police.
China Evergrande has 778 developments in its stable, making it China&rsquo;s fourth-largest. Sunac China Holdings Limited and Longfor Group Holdings Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/lngpf#OTC">LNGPF</a>) are slightly larger in size by total developments and Country Garden Group Limited (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ctryf#OTC">CTRYF</a>) is China&rsquo;s number one property developer, with 3,121 developments throughout the mainland.
Shares in China Evergrande were down as much as 25% mid-day while the sector overall was off 6%, the most since December last year. Country Garden was 7% lower. China Aoyuan Group Ltd, which in July <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-25/china-developers-slump-most-since-december-as-evergrande-weighs?srnd=premium-asia" style="color:#0563c1">sought approval</a> to refinance as much as $5.9 billion in foreign currency debt, led the property sector declines, falling 76% in morning trading.
<h3>Bleeding Bad News</h3>
The market bleeding was worsened by a string of other bad news from developers Monday. China Oceanwide Holdings Limited <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-25/property-firm-china-oceanwide-gets-liquidation-order-in-bermuda" style="color:#0563c1">said that it faces a winding up order</a> after defaulting on $175 million in principle loan note payments. Oceanwide&#39;s shares were suspended from trading Monday on the news. China&rsquo;s regulator said it is investigating Ping An Real Estate Co., a spin off of the life insurance firm Ping An Insurance Group Co (OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/piaif#OTC">PIAIF</a>) while investors are concerned the latest credit contagion will catch on to Country Garden, which has already said it is feeling the squeeze.
Junk dollar debt, a type of junk bond for the Chinese real estate market, hit new lows at 15 cents on the dollar. Junk dollar debt issued by Chinese real estate firms consistently returned 9% plus per year between 2010-2020, and was a popular savings tool for investors. In the past two years, prices have collapsed around 75%.
While the Chinese government has plenty of cash on hand to provide liquidity stimulus if needed to its domestic property developers, so far Xi Jinping&rsquo;s government has been reluctant to encourage the speculative excesses of the market that were the hallmark of the country&rsquo;s last 30 years.
However, as part of a series of steps to shore up the local economy, China is now easing controls on the amount of capital that foreigners can invest in its local financial markets in Beijing and Shanghai. Last year, it provided support for billions more in junk bond issuances by property development firms, a trend it is expected to continue. The country&rsquo;s government has also loosened curbs on property purchases nationwide, although this is unlikely to boost new home sales much, Fitch <a href="https://www.fitchratings.com/research/corporate-finance/chinas-recent-policy-easing-unlikely-to-boost-national-new-home-sales-25-09-2023" style="color:#0563c1">said in a note</a> Monday.
&ldquo;The recent wave of policy easing in China will have a greater impact on existing homes for sale but is unlikely to propel sales of new homes on a sustained basis,&rdquo; wrote Fitch Ratings analyst Karl Shen.
&ldquo;Developers with significant landbank in lower-tier cities or non-core districts of mid-tier cities are likely to face anaemic new home sales and negative operating cash flows for a prolonged period.&rdquo;
<h3>A 2008-Style Meltdown Looming?</h3>
Woes in the Chinese property market are sparking talks of a 2008-style banking crisis that could spill over to the rest of the world. Chinese growth accounts for 35% of the world&rsquo;s growth, nearly three times the amount of growth in the world&rsquo;s next-biggest markets, India and the western hemisphere, <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2023/05/01/asia-poised-to-drive-global-economic-growth-boosted-by-chinas-reopening" style="color:#0563c1">according to data</a> from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Further, many of the conditions in China now parallel those in the US housing market more than a decade ago.
Much of the Chinese property bubble was caused by developers using revenue from new home sales to invest in other plots of land without completing existing developments, according to local reports. When the country&rsquo;s premier Xi Jinping put lending restrictions on new home purchases at the start of 2017, property developers felt the pinch. Country Garden&rsquo;s stock, for example, has declined 93% since its April 1, 2018 high.
Eighty percent of Chinese household savings are in the property market. If there is continued cooling in China&rsquo;s domestic market, this could translate into risk adverseness by global banks which fear the impacts of declining growth from China.
&ldquo;The problem China has now is a deep-seated structural one,&rdquo; Rob Subbarman, head of global research at Nomura <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-09-14/china-economic-crisis-2023-what-real-estate-market-collapse-means-for-world" style="color:#0563c1">said</a> on Bloomberg TV.

PIAIF

China Property Market Woes Spark Fears Of 2008-Style Global Recession Led By China Slump

Benzinga
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/23/09/34673225/a-single-bitcoin-in-2021-was-enough-to-purchase-a-tesla-model-y-easily-heres-what-else-it-" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">A Single Bitcoin In 2021 Was Enough To Purchase A Tesla Model Y Easily, Here&#39;s What Else It Could Have Bought Through The Years</a>
<ul>
<li>In November 2021, when&nbsp;Bitcoin&nbsp;(BTC/USD) reached its all-time high of $67,617.02, the most valuable purchase that could have been made with a single BTC was the 2021&nbsp;Tesla&nbsp;(NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/tsla#NASDAQ">TSLA</a>)&nbsp;Model Y,&nbsp;priced at $62,190.00.&nbsp;</li>
<li>According to research from Coingecko, in 2014, when 1 BTC was worth $465.00, purchasing a car would have been out of reach.</li>
<li>2017 marked the year when 1 BTC was enough to purchase a new car, specifically the 2017 Honda HR-V, which won accolades in the subcompact SUV category. Fast forward to November 2021, and 1 BTC could have bought the 2021 Tesla Model Y.</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/23/09/34675002/after-biden-now-trump-gets-slammed-by-dogecoin-co-creator-tells-elon-musk-free-speech-supp" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">After Biden, Now Trump Gets Slammed By Dogecoin Co-Creator &mdash; Tells Elon Musk, Free Speech Suppression &#39;Starts With T And Ends With Rump&#39;</a>
<ul>
<li>Billy Markus, the co-creator of&nbsp;Dogecoin&nbsp;(DOGE/USD) and popularly referred to as&nbsp;Shibetoshi Nakamoto, took a jab at former President&nbsp;Donald Trump&nbsp;for his alleged impact on free speech.&nbsp;</li>
<li>The conversation started after tech mogul&nbsp;Elon Musk&nbsp;voiced his concerns about the transformation of legacy media into entities suppressing speech. &quot;How did most of the legacy media go from superheroes of free speech to supervillains of speech suppression?&quot;</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/23/09/34673717/apple-analyst-says-iphone-15-pro-pro-max-preorders-strong-out-of-the-gates-increasi" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Apple Analyst Says iPhone 15 Pro, Pro Max Preorders Strong Out Of The Gates, Increasing Confidence In Estimates For Holiday Quarter</a>
<ul>
<li>Apple Inc&nbsp;(NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/aapl#NASDAQ">AAPL</a>) launched the next iteration of its iPhones last week, and early reception to the device has been positive, according to Wedbush analyst&nbsp;Daniel Ives.</li>
<li>Ives has an Outperform rating for Apple shares and a $240 price target.</li>
<li>The iPhone 15 preorders, which began on Friday, were tracking much stronger than consensus estimates, Ives said in a note. Preorders were up roughly 10-12% from the preorders for the iPhone 14, he said, citing Wedbush&#39;s analysis.</li>
</ul>
&#39;Apple GPT&#39; To 10-year Special Apple Watch And Bigger iPhones, 2024 Could Be A Blockbuster Year For Apple
<ul>
<li>Apple Inc&nbsp;(NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/aapl#NASDAQ">AAPL</a>) has a slew of major announcements lined up for 2024, including &quot;Apple GPT,&quot; 10-year anniversary special&nbsp;Apple Watch Series X, and bigger iPhones.</li>
<li>While 2023 has been an average year for Apple when it comes to product launches, Bloomberg columnist&nbsp;Mark Gurman&nbsp;says that Apple has a slew of new product launches and it also plans to enter the generative AI race with &quot;Apple GPT&quot; along with a new large language model.</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/09/34677102/ford-faces-uaw-strike-in-us-now-it-may-have-to-contend-with-another-in-canada" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Ford Faces UAW Strike In US, Now It May Have To Contend With Another In Canada</a>
<ul>
<li>As Detroit-based automaker&nbsp;Ford Motor Co&nbsp;(NYSE:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/f#NYSE" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">F</a>) continues to reel under the impact of the&nbsp;United Auto Workers&nbsp;(UAW) union&#39;s strike in the U.S., Canada&#39;s Unifor union is gearing up for a strike against it.</li>
<li>Unifor said on Sunday that despite negotiations, the union has not reached a tentative agreement with Ford. A strike would commence if the company fails to reach an agreement by Sept. 18, 11: 59 p.m.</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/23/09/34688842/starbucks-promotes-molly-liu-to-co-ceo-of-china-business" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Starbucks Promotes Molly Liu To Co-CEO Of China Business</a>
<ul>
<li>Coffee giant&nbsp;Starbucks Corp&nbsp;(NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/sbux#NASDAQ">SBUX</a>) has promoted Molly Liu to executive vice president and co-chief executive officer of Starbucks China, effective October 2, 2023.</li>
<li>Liu has served as Starbucks China&#39;s chief operating officer since 2021 and had previously served as the company&#39;s vice president of Digital Ventures.</li>
<li>As head of the Digital Ventures organization, she set the foundation for the company&#39;s digital flywheel in the market with the launch of &#39;Starbucks Delivers&#39; and &#39;Starbucks Now&#39; digital ordering services, which constituted 48% of total China sales in Q3 FY23.</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/09/34690906/kkr-acquires-singtels-regional-data-centre-unit-for-807m" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">KKR Acquires SingTel&#39;s Regional Data Centre Unit For $807M</a>
<ul>
<li>Investment firm&nbsp;KKR &amp; Co Inc&nbsp;KKR has signed a definitive agreement under which a fund managed by KKR will commit up to S$1.1 billion ($800 million) for a 20% stake in&nbsp;Singtel&#39;s&nbsp;regional data center business.&nbsp;</li>
<li>The investment is a part of KKR&#39;s Asia infrastructure strategy. It puts the enterprise value of Singtel&#39;s overall regional data center business at S$5.5 billion.</li>
<li>KKR will have the option to increase its stake to 25% by 2027 at the pre-agreed valuation.</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
Reuters
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/09/34687278/chevrons-strike-impacted-australian-gas-facility-resumes-complete-production" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Chevron&#39;s Strike-Impacted Australian Gas Facility Resumes Complete Production</a>
<ul>
<li>Chevron Corp&#39;s&nbsp;CVX Wheatstone liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Western Australia has resumed full production, which was previously affected by a fault last week, resulting in a roughly 20% reduction in production.</li>
<li>Wheatstone, in conjunction with the nearby Gorgon facility, collectively contributes to around 7% of the global LNG supply.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Chevron emphasized that the fault and the ongoing strikes did not impact the scheduled deliveries, a fact supported by shipping data on LSEG Eikon, which showed no disruptions to Wheatstone&#39;s exports.</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/government/23/09/34681677/chinas-embattled-property-developer-evergrande-falls-in-deeper-pit-police-detains-wealth-management" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">China&#39;s Embattled Property Developer Evergrande Falls In Deeper Pit: Police Detains Wealth Management Staff</a>
<ul>
<li>Following&nbsp;China Evergrande Group&#39;s&nbsp;(OTC:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">EGRNF</a>) inability to repay investors, Chinese authorities have taken certain employees from the company&#39;s wealth management division into custody.&nbsp;</li>
<li>This marks the initiation of the first criminal investigation against the beleaguered property developer since a colossal debt crisis struck it in late 2021.</li>
<li>The detentions of its official indicate a potential new investigation that could further compound the company&#39;s existing problems.</li>
</ul>
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/biotech/23/09/34689054/quality-control-issues-at-novo-nordisks-clayton-plant-key-site-for-weight-loss-diabetes-drug-prod" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Quality Control Issues at Novo Nordisk&#39;s Clayton Plant - Key Site for Weight-Loss, Diabetes Drug Production</a>
<ul>
<li>The FDA has reportedly issued a report detailing quality control lapses at&nbsp;Novo Nordisk A/S&#39;s&nbsp;(NYSE:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/nvo#NYSE" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">NVO</a>) Clayton, North Carolina plant. Clayton is a major site for the company&#39;s production of its active pharmaceutical ingredients, including semaglutide, which is used in its hugely popular weight-loss drug Wegovy and type 2 diabetes drug Ozempic.</li>
<li>Novo Nordisk has hired U.S. private contract manufacturer&nbsp;PCI Pharma Services&nbsp;to handle the assembly and packaging of Wegovy as it races to boost output of the weight-loss drug to meet demand.</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
Financial Times
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/09/34682813/softbanks-masayoshi-son-is-chatgpt-heavy-user-explores-investing-in-openai-after-bumper-arm-ipo" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Softbank&#39;s Masayoshi Son Is ChatGPT&#39; Heavy User&#39; - Explores Investing In OpenAI After Bumper Arm IPO</a>
<ul>
<li>Following the booming stock market debut of&nbsp;SoftBank Group Corp&#39;s&nbsp;(OTC:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/sftbf#OTC" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">SFTBF</a>) (OTC:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/sftby#OTC" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">SFTBY</a>)&nbsp;Arm Holding Plc&nbsp;ARM, the Japanese multinational conglomerate is exploring the possibility of investing in OpenAI.</li>
<li>According to sources, SoftBank is also contemplating substantial investments in direct competitors of OpenAI.&nbsp;</li>
<li>SoftBank has already begun collaborating with OpenAI in the Japanese market, allowing local companies to develop intelligent chatbots.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
Bloomberg
<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/23/09/34681674/alibaba-plans-2b-investment-in-turkey-report" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">Alibaba Plans $2B Investment In Turkey</a>
<ul>
<li>Alibaba Group Holding Ltd&nbsp;(NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/baba#NYSE">BABA</a>) reportedly plans a $2 billion investment in Turkey after a meeting between the Chief Executive Officer, Michael Evans, and Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.</li>
<li>The company has already invested about $1.4 billion in Turkey through its e-commerce marketplace,&nbsp;Trendyol.</li>
<li>He added that Alibaba has a lot of confidence that Turkey can become one of the leading e-export countries.</li>
</ul>

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Single Bitcoin In 2021 Was Enough To Purchase A Tesla Model Y, Softbank Explores Investing In OpenAI, Ford Faces UAW Strike In US, Canada: Today's Top Stories

Following&nbsp;China Evergrande Group&#39;s&nbsp;(OTCEM:EGRNF) inability to repay investors, Chinese authorities have taken certain employees from the company&#39;s wealth management division into custody.&nbsp;
This marks the initiation of the first criminal investigation against the beleaguered property developer since a colossal debt crisis struck it in late 2021.
The detentions of its official indicate a potential new investigation that could further compound the company&#39;s existing problems.
During protests by disgruntled investors at Evergrande&#39;s Shenzhen headquarters in 2021, Reuters noted,&nbsp;Du Liang&nbsp;was identified by staff as the general manager and legal representative of Evergrande&#39;s wealth management division.
In a statement on social media on Saturday night, the police in Shenzhen&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://news.cnstock.com/news,bwkx-202309-5123894.htm" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">disclosed</a>&nbsp;that they had taken &quot;criminal compulsory measures&quot; against Du and other suspected individuals associated with Evergrande Financial Wealth Management Co.&nbsp;
However, it remains unconfirmed whether Du was among those detained, as the police statement did not specify the number of people arrested, the nature of the charges filed against them, or the date of their detention.
The southern metropolis of Shenzhen&#39;s local police disclosed that they had recently apprehended several employees from Evergrande Wealth, a division established in 2015 to raise funds for its parent company from individual and corporate investors.&nbsp;
This operation&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/18/economy/china-evergrande-staff-detained-debt-intl-hnk/index.html" style="color:#4a6ee0; background:transparent; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt" target="_blank">falls</a>&nbsp;under China&#39;s &quot;shadow banking&quot; sector, which operates outside the conventional banking system and is subject to relatively light regulation.&nbsp;
It plays a significant role in China&#39;s financial sector by channeling funds into high-yield investments.
Evergrande&#39;s current valuation stands at approximately HK$ 8.2 billion, representing a dramatic decline from its peak in 2017 when the company was valued at nearly HK$ 420 billion.

Government

China's Embattled Property Developer Evergrande Falls In Deeper Pit: Police Detains Wealth Management Staff

Property developer,&nbsp;China Evergrande Group&nbsp;(OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/egrnf#OTC">EGRNF</a>) disclosed&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://doc.irasia.com/listco/hk/evergrande/announcement/a230828.pdf" style="background-image:initial; background-position:initial; background-size:initial; background-repeat:initial; background-attachment:initial; background-origin:initial; background-clip:initial; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; color:#4a6ee0" target="_blank">extending&nbsp;</a>the creditors&#39; voting record time related to its offshore debt restructuring plan.&nbsp;
The company, in the filing, said that it is extending the voting record time to September 20 from August 23, with scheme meetings with creditors adjourned to September 26 from&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://doc.irasia.com/listco/hk/evergrande/announcement/a230816.pdf" style="background-image:initial; background-position:initial; background-size:initial; background-repeat:initial; background-attachment:initial; background-origin:initial; background-clip:initial; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; color:#4a6ee0" target="_blank">August 28</a>.
The company lost around 80% of its market value, equivalent to $2 billion today, after the shares resumed trading on August 28, as per&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.reuters.com/business/china-evergrande-shares-plunge-more-than-80-trade-resumes-after-17-months-2023-08-28/" style="background-image:initial; background-position:initial; background-size:initial; background-repeat:initial; background-attachment:initial; background-origin:initial; background-clip:initial; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; color:#4a6ee0" target="_blank">Reuters</a>.
As per the report, China Evergrande seeks approval from over 75% of the holders of each debt class to support the plan, which offers creditors a basket of options to swap debt for new bonds and equity-linked instruments backed by its shares and those of its Hong Kong-listed units.
China Evergrande has been in crisis with debt defaults, unfinished homes, and unpaid suppliers, as per the report.
The company shares have been suspended since March 21, 2022, and restarted trading after it disclosed fulfillment of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange conditions.
On August 17, China Evergrande filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/08/33905957/china-evergrande-files-for-chapter-15-bankruptcy-protection-in-us" style="background-image:initial; background-position:initial; background-size:initial; background-repeat:initial; background-attachment:initial; background-origin:initial; background-clip:initial; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; color:#4a6ee0" target="_blank">protection in a U.S. Court</a>.
Related:&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/08/33921560/chinas-real-estate-giant-evergrande-embraces-us-chapter-15-unmasking-chinas-deeper-economic-concerns" style="background-image:initial; background-position:initial; background-size:initial; background-repeat:initial; background-attachment:initial; background-origin:initial; background-clip:initial; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; color:#4a6ee0" target="_blank">Evergrande&#39;s US Chapter 15 Filing: A Calculated Move Amid China&#39;s Looming Property Crisis?</a>
Yesterday, China Evergrande reported an H1 FY23 net loss of RMB(33.0) billion ($4.53 billion), which narrowed from&nbsp;<a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://doc.irasia.com/listco/hk/evergrande/interim/2023/int.pdf" style="background-image:initial; background-position:initial; background-size:initial; background-repeat:initial; background-attachment:initial; background-origin:initial; background-clip:initial; margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; color:#4a6ee0" target="_blank">RMB(66.4) billion a year ago</a>&nbsp;on higher revenues (RMB 128.2 billion vs. RMB89.3 billion a year ago).

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