Mining giant Vedanta has sought the Competition Commission of India’s approval for its proposal to acquire 100% in stressed infrastructure firm Jaiprakash Associates (JAL), the Economic Times of India reported. Vedanta has emerged as the highest bidder to acquire JAL under the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) with a net present deal value of Rs 12,505 crore, beating Adani Group’s offer. Under the insolvency law, the CCI’s clearance is a must before resolution plans by suitors are approved by the committee of creditors of the stressed company.

In a landmark ruling with wide-ranging implications for the real estate sector, the Supreme Court of India has drawn a clear distinction between speculative investors, whom it described as ‘slow poison’, and genuine homebuyers, the Hindustan Times reported. The court said that speculative investors should not be allowed to misuse the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code as a recovery tool to seek lucrative returns without any intention of owning a home. It observed that such investors harm the residential real estate sector and, by extension, the Indian middle class.

The Supreme Court of Korea ruled that a former husband’s act of providing his only real estate property as collateral to a creditor without paying his ex-wife’s property division settlement cannot be canceled if the creditor was unaware of his financial situation, the Chosunlibo reported. The Supreme Court’s Second Division (Presiding Justice Kwon Young-jun) overturned a lower court’s ruling in favor of the plaintiff, Lee, in her fraudulent conveyance cancellation lawsuit against A, and remanded the case to Uijeongbu District Court on the 14th.

China's new home prices fell again in August, extending a prolonged slump in prices as persistently weak demand in the pivotal housing sector remains a drag on economic growth. Prices slipped 0.3% in August from the previous month, according to Reuters calculation based on data released by the National Bureau of Statistics. The figure matched July's month-on-month decline and extended a weak trend that has persisted since May 2023. On an annual basis, new home prices dropped 2.5% in August, narrowing from a 2.8% decline in July. China's real estate sector entered a downturn in 2021.

India and the U.S. will hold trade talks on Tuesday, New Delhi said, raising hopes for a breakthrough weeks after President Donald Trump imposed punitive tariffs on the South Asian nation for buying Russian oil, Reuters reported. The move comes after Trump struck a more conciliatory tone in statements last week and expressed optimism that they could finalise a trade deal. The U.S. trade representative for South Asia, Brendan Lynch, will be in New Delhi for one day of talks, Indian chief negotiator Rajesh Agarwal said.

The liquidators of China Evergrande Group have received non-binding indicative offers for the developer’s majority stake in its property management arm, and potential bidders will be invited to submit final offers as soon as November, a filing showed, Reuters reported. Evergrande’s liquidators control a 51.016% holding in Evergrande Property Services Group according to the filing by the unit on Thursday. Evergrande Services had a market value of about HK$9.95 billion ($1.28 billion) before the announcement, LSEG data showed.

The Supreme Court on Friday suggested major reforms in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code "to restore faith in the regulatory and insolvency framework,” even as it urged the government to come up with a revival fund to provide financing for stressed real estate projects undergoing insolvency proceedings, the Economic Times of India reported.

Beijing has warned Mexico to think twice before moving ahead with a plan to raise tariffs that could hurt Chinese automakers, saying it would retaliate against the measure, the Wall Street Journal reported. “At a time when the U.S.’s abuse of tariffs has sparked widespread global opposition, countries should strengthen communication and coordination to jointly safeguard free trade and multilateralism, and must not sacrifice the interests of third parties due to coercion,” a Chinese commerce ministry spokesperson said in a statement released late Thursday.