China Evergrande Group posted a $4.5 billion loss in the first half as the world’s most-indebted developer continues with plans to restart stock trading and its lengthy debt restructuring process.
The company reported a loss attributable to shareholders of 33 billion yuan ($4.5 billion) for the six months ended June 30, according to a statement Sunday. That adds to more than 582 billion yuan of losses from the previous two years, which were the company’s first two full-year losses since its 2009 listing.
The result underscores Evergrande’s struggles during the housing crisis that has rocked the world’s second-largest economy over the past two years. As China cracked down on the booming real estate industry to cut risk and make homes more affordable, many developers have been hit. Evergrande’s largest peer, Country Garden Holdings Co., is on the verge of default and expected to also post a loss for the first half.
The results give offshore bondholders more to digest as they consider the company’s debt restructuring proposal. The defaulted real estate giant asked to convene meetings for creditors to approve its offshore debt overhaul plan on Monday.
In April, the developer said investors holding 77% of its Class A bonds backed the plan, while just 30% of Class C holders endorsed it.
Evergrande could be closer to resuming trading of its shares after reporting results, and there’s potential for approval of its debt-restructuring plan, Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Daniel Fan and Adrian Sim wrote in July. The firm has applied to resume trading in Hong Kong at 9am on Aug. 28 and earlier this month said an improved internal control system and process met its obligations under Hong Kong listing rules.
The financial results were audited by Prism, a small accounting firm named as Evergrande’s auditor in January after PricewaterhouseCoopers resigned. Prism added a disclaimer of conclusion to Evergrande’s accounts, citing multiple uncertainties.