Prices of new homes in 70 Chinese cities fell again in August (Getty Images)
In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, official stats reveal China’s deepening home price skid, and developer Sino-Ocean suspends debt payments for lack of ready cash. Also making waves are ESR’s new logistics park in India and Fantasia’s restructuring deal.
China Home Prices Drop at Faster Pace Before Fresh Stimulus
China home prices dropped at a faster pace in August, underscoring why policymakers stepped up efforts at the end of month to address a slowdown that’s weighing on the world’s second-largest economy.
New home prices in 70 cities, excluding state-subsidised housing, declined 0.29 percent last month from July, when they fell 0.23 percent, National Bureau of Statistics figures showed Friday. Other official data showed property investment and residential sales remained weak, even as economic activity picked up. Read more>>
Sino-Ocean Suspends Offshore Debt Payments Amid Liquidity Crunch
Chinese state-linked developer Sino-Ocean Group Holding has suspended payment on all its offshore borrowings, citing tight liquidity, as the nation’s property debt crisis deepens.
The country’s 25th-largest builder “is fully committed to formulating a viable holistic restructuring of its offshore debts”, Sino-Ocean told the Hong Kong stock exchange Friday. Trading on the exchange of eight dollar bonds will be suspended until further notice, but prices for some notes were indicated at least 2 cents lower at about 9 cents and on pace for record lows, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Read more>>
ESR to Invest $43M to Build Logistics Park in India’s Odisha
ESR on Wednesday announced its acquisition of 57 acres (23.1 hectares) of land in India’s eastern state of Odisha for the development of a logistics park. The investment for the project amounts to INR 360 crore ($43.3 million).
Hong Kong-listed ESR said it secured the land in Cuttack city with a total development potential of 1.2 million square feet (111,484 square metres). Read more>>
Fantasia Bondholders Reach Deal on Developer’s Debt Restructuring: Report
Bondholders of Fantasia Group China have reportedly signed off on the developer’s plan for restructuring its more than RMB 6.4 billion ($879.7 million) debt pile.
Proposals for adjusting the arrangements for repayment of the principal and interest on the Shenzhen-based company’s five RMB-denominated bonds were all greenlit at a meeting with creditors Wednesday, National Business Daily reported Thursday, citing an insider. Read more>>
China’s Retail Sales Surprise With Faster Growth in August
China’s retail sales and industrial production picked up pace in August with better-than-expected growth, according to National Bureau of Statistics data released Friday.
Retail sales grew by 4.6 percent in August from a year earlier, beating expectations for 3 percent growth forecast by a Reuters poll. The increase was also faster than the 2.5 percent year-on-year pace in July. Read more>>
South Korean House Prices Climb for Second Month
South Korea’s housing market climbed for a second straight month in August, data showed Friday, with prices rising across the country.
The nationwide house transaction price index rose 0.16 percent in August, after snapping a 13-month downtrend in July with a 0.03 percent increase, according to the Korea Real Estate Board. It was the biggest percentage gain since December 2021. Read more>>
Bank of Korea Warns of Overpriced Housing Market, Excessive Debt
South Korea’s central bank warned that housing prices remain overvalued relative to basic economic conditions and household debt levels are excessive.
“Housing prices remain at a high level, out of sync with income, and the housing price-to-income ratio is very high even compared with major countries,” the Bank of Korea said in its monetary credit policy report on Thursday. Read more>>
Country Garden’s Forest City in Malaysia at Only 1% of Resident Target
As cash-strapped Chinese developer Country Garden battles to stave off default, its sprawling $100 billion development in Malaysia has come under scrutiny from creditors even as the Southeast Asian nation dangles financial incentives to lure investments.
Billed as a paradise with turtles and white-sand beaches, Country Garden’s Forest City development in the state of Johor next to Singapore aims to house 700,000 people across 2,830 hectares (6,993 acres) on four reclaimed islands upon completion in 2035. Read more>>
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