China Evergrande misses 2nd debt payment in a week, investors fear ‘large losses’
Global News
The company was due on Wednesday to make a $47.5 million bond interest payment on its 2024 dollar bond, after having missed $83.5 million in coupon payments last Thursday.
China Evergrande Group missed paying bond interest due on Wednesday, two bondholders said, its second unpaid offshore debt payment in a week, although the cash-strapped company is scrambling to meet its obligations in its home market.
The company, reeling under a debt pile of $305 billion, was due on Wednesday to make a $47.5 million bond interest payment on its 9.5% March 2024 dollar bond, after having missed $83.5 million in coupon payments last Thursday.
With liabilities equal to 2% of China’s GDP, Evergrande has sparked concerns its woes could spread through the financial system and reverberate around the world, though worries have eased somewhat after the central bank vowed to protect homebuyers’ interests.
The developer’s silence on its offshore payment obligations has, however, left global investors wondering if they will have to swallow large losses when 30-day grace periods end for coupons that were due on Sept. 23 and Sept. 29.
Some offshore Evergrande bondholders had neither received interest payments nor any communication by the end of Wednesday New York time, said the people familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified due to sensitivity of the issue.
A spokesperson for Evergrande did not have any immediate comment. Reuters was unable to determine whether Evergrande has told bondholders what it plans to do regarding the coupon payment due on Wednesday.
The two missed offshore payments come as the company, which has nearly $20 billion in offshore debt, faces deadlines on dollar bond coupon payments totalling $162.38 million in the next month.
Once China’s top-selling developer, Evergrande is now expected to be one of the largest-ever restructurings in the country. It has been prioritising its onshore liabilities amid concerns about its troubles triggering social unrest.
