China

Chinese President Xi Jinping has made no secret of his desire to deflate China’s property bubble. But according to people with knowledge of government deliberations, he is facing resistance over a measure aimed at curbing housing speculation: a nationwide property tax, the Wall Street Journal reported. Many economists and analysts have long argued that such a tax could make it more expensive to speculate on property and help bring down prices. That would help reduce the financial burden on middle-class families, in line with Mr. Xi’s goal of a more even distribution of wealth.

China Evergrande Group's deal to sell a 51% stake in its property services unit has been put on hold, two people with knowledge of the matter said, in a blow to the embattled developer's hopes of avoiding a potentially disruptive default, Reuters reported. Evergrande, teetering on the brink of collapse with more than $300 billion in debt, was in talks to sell the stake in Evergrande Property Services to smaller rival Hopson Development Holdings for around HK$20 billion ($2.6 billion), sources have previously told Reuters.

China's economy hit its slowest pace of growth in a year in the third quarter, hurt by power shortages and wobbles in the property sector, highlighting the challenge facing policymakers as they seek to prop up a faltering recovery while reining in the real estate sector, Reuters reported. Gross domestic product expanded 4.9% from a year ago, missing forecasts, as attempts by Beijing to curb lending to the property sector exacerbated the fallout from electricity shortages which sent factory output back to levels last seen in early 2020, when heavy COVID-19 curbs were in place.

China Properties Group Ltd said on Friday it had defaulted on notes worth $226 million as it failed to secure funds by the maturity date, joining a list of property developers in the country that are reeling from a debt crisis, Reuters reported. The case underscores the impact of China Evergrande Group , which is struggling under $305 billion in debt, on the rest of the high-yield sector as liquidity dries up and sales slow. Earlier this week, Chinese developer Sinic Holdings said it would likely default on bonds worth $250 million. China Properties said it had failed to secure funds by Oct.

China’s central bank broke its silence on the debt crisis at China Evergrande Group, saying risks to the financial system stemming from the developer’s struggles are “controllable” and unlikely to spread, Bloomberg News reported. Authorities and local governments are resolving the situation based on “market-oriented and rule-of-law principles,” People’s Bank of China official Zou Lan said at a news briefing on Friday. The central bank has asked lenders to keep credit to the real estate sector “stable and orderly,” said Zou, who is head of the financial market department.

China faces tough trade-offs in dealing with the fallout from the financial troubles at property developer China Evergrande Group, the International Monetary Fund said, Bloomberg News reported. On the one hand, the country risks being seen as backing off from its economic deleveraging drive if it provides too much support to Evergrande and other affected companies, the Washington, D.C.-based lender said Tuesday in its semi-annual Financial Stability Report. On the other hand, it could spur more stress if it puts off arranging backing for the financial system.

Shenzhen-based Baoneng Investment Group missed repayments on yet another debt to finance its unrealized automaking dream, underscoring the deepening capital crunch of the once-highflying private conglomerate, Nikkei Asia reported. Baoneng Motors Group, the auto unit of Baoneng, failed to pay interest on a 2.8 billion yuan ($434 million) trust loan to finance a new-energy vehicle (NEV) industrial park project in Guangzhou, state-backed China Railway Trust disclosed. Baoneng and its controlling shareholder, Yao Zhenhua, offered guarantees for the product.

Debt-saddled Chinese property firms took heavy fire in bond markets on Tuesday, after the poster child of the sector's woes, Evergrande Group, missed its third round of bond payments in as many weeks and others warned of defaults, Reuters reported. A wave of developers face payment deadlines before the end of the year and with Evergrande's fate looking increasingly bleak, fears are mounting of a wider crisis.

China is trying to cool its costly and dangerously debt-ridden housing market, where high prices and go-go levels of borrowing and spending are increasingly seen as a national threat. But as the troubles of a major property developer and its $300 billion mountain of debt drive a government effort to contain the peril, Beijing risks hurting a major driver of its crucial economic growth engine: home buyers like He Qiang, the New York Times reported.

Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the launch of a 1.5 billion yuan ($232.47 million) fund on Tuesday to support biodiversity protection in developing countries. Xi was virtually addressing the COP15 biodiversity summit in Kunming, China, where diplomats, scientists, and conservationists are meeting with the aim of forging a global agreement to halt and reverse the destruction of nature. "Developing countries need help and support and solidarity must be strengthened to allow developing countries to benefit in a fairer way," Xi said.