Chinese President Xi Jinping's housing crisis efforts jeopardized as Evergrande face trouble

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Also read: ‘Empty houses everywhere': Former Chinese official's rare public critique on China's economy Evergrande's main domestic unit, Hengda Real Estate Group, said in a Shenzhen stock exchange filing late on Monday it had failed to pay the principal and interest for a 4 billion yuan ($547 million) bond that was due by 25 September. (Exciting news! Mint is now on WhatsApp Channels: Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest financial insights! Click here!) Hengda said it will actively negotiate with bondholders in a bid to reach a solution as soon as possible while working to resolve the debt risks and safeguard creditors' rights and interests.

Also read: Chinese authorities detain Evergrande staff amid crisis in property market Evergrande has been seeking creditors' approval for its proposals to restructure offshore debt worth $31.7 billion which includes bonds, collateral, and repurchase obligations. China home prices dropped at a faster pace in August, underscoring why policymakers stepped up efforts at the end of the month to address a slowdown.

New-home prices in 70 cities, excluding state-subsidized housing, declined 0.29% last month from July when they fell 0.23%. China at the end of August unveiled fresh reductions in down-payment requirements for homebuyers and allowed lenders to lower rates on existing mortgages to stimulate purchases.

Residential sales by value hovered near the weakest monthly level in almost six years, up 2.9% in August from July, according to Bloomberg calculations based on separate official data. Real estate development investment, which contributed about 11% of economic output last year, stayed almost unchanged from July, nearing the lowest level this year.