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SYDNEY, July 28 (Reuters) - Foreign bank lending to Australian office real estate hit a record high in the first quarter as overseas lenders continued to stump up cash for a struggling corner of the property market out of favour with local banks. The data does not identify individual banks, however a separate dataset covering overall corporate lending showed European, Japanese, Singaporean and Chinese banks had led the increase in foreign lending since 2019. Loans from Australia's biggest banks fell A$2.3 billion to A$83 billion over the same period, similar to levels in late 2021, the data showed. So, as Australian lenders have retreated to the relative safety of retail mortgages, foreign banks have stepped up. Sydney was the worst-performing major Asian office market in the first quarter, according to research from global property services firm Jones Lang LaSalle.

Persons: Jonathan Kearns, Kearns, Jones Lang LaSalle, Lewis Jackson, Stephen Coates Organizations: SYDNEY, prudential, Australia's, Challenger, Reserve Bank of Australia, Reuters, Sydney, Investment, Thomson Locations: Australia, Asia, Europe

☆ Explainer: Dalian Wanda's repayment woes weigh on China property sentiment
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Clare Jim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HOW MUCH DEBT DOES DALIAN WANDA HAVE? Dalian Wanda Group, owned by China's once-richest man Wang Jianlin, is the country's largest commercial property developer managing many shopping malls, offices and hotels across the country. WHAT IS NEXT FOR DALIAN WANDA? If Wanda Commercial manages this repayment, the next deadline will be a 3.5 billion yuan onshore bond due on July 29. "The extreme volatility in Dalian Wanda's bond prices shows how fearful and emotional the market is at this point."

Persons: DALIAN WANDA, China's, Wang Jianlin, Wanda Commercial, Wanda, Sandra Chow, Scott Murdoch, Jamie Freed Organizations: Dalian Wanda, DALIAN, Dalian Wanda Group, Dalian Wanda Commercial Management, Zhuhai, Bloomberg News, Country Garden, HK, Ocean Group, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Dalian, Hong Kong, Asia, Pacific, Sydney

☆ Evergrande's liabilities, depleted coffers raise business viability concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Clare Jim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The firm announced an offshore debt restructuring plan in March, expecting it to facilitate a gradual resumption of operations and generation of cash flow. Total cash slumped to 14.3 billion yuan, versus 28.8 billion yuan in 2021 and 180.7 billion yuan in 2020. OFFSHORE DEBTCreditors and analysts are now waiting for the convening hearings for Evergrande's offshore debt restructuring schemes in the hope to get more clarity on its business outlook. A company risks being delisted in Hong Kong if its shares remain suspended for 18 months. Hong Kong Stock Exchange said it does not comment on individual companies as a policy.

Persons: Charles Macgregor, Evergrande, Clare Jim, Himani Sarkar Organizations: HK, Lucror, Evergrande, Services, New Energy Vehicle Group, Prism, Shanghai Limited, Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Asia, China's, Hong Kong, Cayman Islands, Prism Hong Kong

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Apple, Carnival, Snowflake, Nike, SolarEdge and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Jefferies upgrades Carnival to buy from hold Jefferies said it sees a "confluence of positive dynamics" for Carnival. Citi initiates Apple as buy Citi said it sees further upside for the tech giant, slapping a Street-high $240 price target. Citi initiates Dell as buy Citi said the computer maker is gaining share. Goldman Sachs reiterates Nike as buy Goldman Sachs said it's standing by shares of Nike after the company's earnings report Thursday. " Bank of America reiterates T-Mobile as buy Bank of America said the stock is "undervalued."

Persons: TD Cowen, Cowen, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Jefferies, Snowflake, Virgin, Daiwa, NKE, Stephens, SolarEdge, Riley, Stifel, Davidson Organizations: Citi, Pacific Biosciences, Pacific Bioscience, Jefferies, Deutsche Bank, Apple, Dell, Bank of America, Virgin Galactic, underperform Bank of America, Virgin Galactic's, Italian Air Force, AMD, Intel, Nike, BMO, FirstService Brands, Occidental Petroleum, Mobile, Southwestern Energy Locations: 3Q23, China, Occidental, midstream

☆ Evergrande Property Services works to ensure working capital until mid-2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 5 (Reuters) - Evergrande Property Services Group Ltd (6666.HK) said on Monday it would have sufficient working capital to meet its financial obligations up to mid-2024 through various measures aimed at boosting liquidity. These include talks with embattled parent China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) on repaying 13.4 billion yuan ($1.89 billion) involved in a pledge, streamlining operating costs, and negotiating with suppliers to extend payables, it said. The 2022 net profit was still 46.4% lower than the figure for 2020, the year before its parent slipped into a debt crisis. The firm had total liabilities of 8.7 billion yuan last year, compared to 10.1 billion in 2021 and 7.1 billion in 2020. ($1=7.1069 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Upasana Singh and Clare Jim; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Evergrande, Upasana Singh, Clare Jim, Shounak Dasgupta, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Evergrande, Group, HK, China Evergrande, Thomson

☆ CORRECTED Evergrande Property Services flags sufficient working capital till 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 5 (Reuters) - Evergrande Property Services Group Ltd (6666.HK) on Monday reported a 46.4% plunge in its fiscal 2022 profit, when compared with fiscal 2020, and said it would have sufficient working capital to meet its financial obligations up to 2024 through various measures aimed at boosting liquidity. The property services unit of embattled China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) said profit attributable for the year ended Dec. 31 was 1.42 billion yuan ($199.85 million), compared with 2.65 billion yuan in 2020. "The group will have sufficient working capital to meet its financial obligations up to 30 June 2024," Evergrande Property said. Evergrande Property's shares have been suspended since March 21, 2022, pending the company's financial results and a probe into seized deposits worth $2 billion. Evergrande Property's results are also in focus as China Evergrande gave creditors a basket of options in its debt restructuring terms to swap their debt into some equity-linked instruments backed by the unit.

Persons: China Evergrande, Upasana Singh, Clare Jim, Shounak Dasgupta Organizations: Evergrande, Group, HK, China Evergrande, Thomson Locations: China

☆ Explainer: What's next for China Evergrande after restructuring proposal?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Clare Jim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

HONG KONG, April 27 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) will get a signal on Thursday of the level of creditor backing for its offshore debt restructuring proposal, with investors to be given an incentive for early support. While some major creditors have already agreed to support the restructuring proposal, others are eager to cut ties with the debt-laden property developer and move on. WHAT DOES THE OFFSHORE DEBT RESTRUCTURING PROPOSAL OFFER? The equity-linked instruments will be backed by the group and its two Hong Kong-listed companies, Evergrande Property Services Group (6666.HK) and Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (0708.HK). Evergrande established a risk-management committee in December 2021 that included officials from state companies to assist in its debt and asset restructuring.

☆ Australia's IPH reveals data breach originated from member firm's systems
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 17 (Reuters) - Australia's IPH Ltd (IPH.AX) said on Monday a forensic probe into the data breach last month revealed that a limited set of data, which originated from member firm Spruson & Ferguson (Australia), was downloaded by an unauthorised third-party. "Based on this analysis, IPH has determined to notify a small number of individuals whose personal information was in the dataset." The Sydney-based firm estimated A$2 million ($1.34 million) to A$2.5 million (pre-tax) to be incurred as non-underlying costs in its full-year 2023 accounts related to the incident. IPH joins a long list of Australian firms reporting cybersecurity breaches over the past few months, which experts have attributed to an understaffed cybersecurity industry in the country. read more($1 = 1.4923 Australian dollars)Reporting by Jaskiran Singh in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh VenkateshwaranOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Australia's IPH switches to new network infrastructure after cyberattack
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 24 (Reuters) - Intellectual property services provider IPH Ltd (IPH.AX) said on Friday it has established new network infrastructure and restored key system functionality, a week after reporting a data breach that affected a portion of its IT systems. IPH said on Friday new systems were now in use by the two affected member firms, Spruson & Ferguson (Australia) and Griffith Hack. Sydney-based IPH said it has enhanced network security, adding that it was continuing to work with external cybersecurity and forensic IT advisors on the investigation related to the cyber breach. Fintech firm Latitude Group Holdings (LFS.AX), which also reported a cyberattack last week, had to take its platforms offline after the attack remained active. IPH and Latitude were the latest to join a host of Australian firms which have reported cybersecurity breaches over the past few months.

HONG KONG, March 22 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) on Wednesday announced plans for the restructuring of its $22.7 billion in offshore debt, which could set a template for distressed rivals and shape investor sentiment on the country's embattled property sector. The world's most indebted property developer gave creditors a basket of options to swap their debt into new bonds and equity-linked instruments tied to two Hong Kong-listed companies, Evergrande Property Services Group (6666.HK) and Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (0708.HK). With more than $300 billion in total liabilities including offshore debt, Evergrande has been at the centre of a property debt crisis in which multiple Chinese developers defaulted over the past year, forcing many to enter debt restructuring talks. "The proposed restructuring will alleviate the company's pressure of offshore indebtedness and facilitate the company's efforts to resume operations and resolve issues on shore," Evergrande said in the filing. Evergrande, which began one of China's biggest debt restructuring processes early last year, said on Monday that a key bondholder group had agreed to its proposed terms.

☆ China Evergrande set to unveil offshore debt restructuring proposal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, March 22 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) is set to unveil on Wednesday a restructuring proposal for its $22.7 billion offshore debt that could set the template for distressed peers and shape investor sentiment towards the country's embattled property sector. Two people with knowledge of the proposal said it would give creditors a basket of options to swap their debt into new bonds with extended maturity and equity in Evergrande's two Hong Kong-listed units - Evergrande Property Services Group (6666.HK) and Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (0708.HK). Evergrande, once China's top-selling developer but now the world's most indebted property developer, declined to comment. With more than $300 billion in total liabilities including offshore debt, Evergrande has been at the centre of a property debt crisis in which multiple Chinese developers defaulted over the past year, forcing many to enter debt restructuring talks. Evergrande, which began one of China's biggest debt restructuring processes early last year, said on Monday that a key bondholder group had agreed to its proposed terms and that it plans to publish the details on Wednesday.

HONG KONG, March 20 (Reuters) - Embattled developer China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) plans to publish on Wednesday an offshore debt restructuring term sheet agreed with a key offshore bondholder group, the firm's lawyer told a Hong Kong court. The step paves the way for the world's most indebted property developer to restructure offshore debt of $22.7 billion, as part of liabilities of more than $300 billion. Once China's top-selling developer, Evergrande has been at the centre of a property debt crisis in which multiple developers defaulted on offshore debt obligations over the past few years, forcing many to enter into debt restructuring talks. The two units are Evergrande Property Services Group (6666.HK) and Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (0708.HK). In a court hearing last November, Evergrande said it aimed to win creditors' approval for its debt restructuring proposals by the end of February.

☆ China Evergrande to unveil debt restructure details on Wednesday
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, March 20 (Reuters) - Embattled developer China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) plans to publish an offshore debt restructuring term sheet on Wednesday, aiming to sign an agreement with creditors by month-end, it told a Hong Kong court. With more than $300 billion in liabilities, including the offshore debt, Evergrande began one of China's biggest debt restructuring processes early last year. Once China's top-selling developer, Evergrande has been at the centre of a property debt crisis in which multiple developers defaulted on offshore debt obligations over the past few years, forcing many to enter into debt restructuring talks. The two units are Evergrande Property Services Group (6666.HK) and Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (0708.HK). In a court hearing last November, Evergrande said it aimed to win creditors' approval for its debt restructuring proposals by the end of February.

☆ Australia's IPH detects breach in IT systems
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 16 (Reuters) - Australian intellectual property services provider IPH Ltd (IPH.AX) said on Thursday it had detected unauthorised access to a portion of its IT environment, mainly affecting document management systems of its head office and two of its member firms. The information in document management systems include administrative documents, and some client documents and correspondence in case of the two member firms, Spruson & Ferguson (Australia) and Griffith Hack, the company said. IPH said it was working with external cyber security advisers to conduct a forensic investigation, adding that it has notified the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) of the incident. Australia has seen a rise in cyber attacks since late last year, with breaches reported by at least eight companies, including health insurer Medibank Private Ltd (MPL.AX) and telco Optus. Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Global firms with exposure to collapsed SVB
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

March 13 (Reuters) - Startup-focused lender SVB Financial Group (SIVB.O) became the largest bank to fail since the 2008 financial crisis last week, sending shockwaves across global markets as billions of dollars belonging to companies and investors were left stranded. The collapse raised concerns that the end of decades-long era of cheap money would reveal cracks in the global financial system as climbing interest rates expose vulnerabilities in the economy. HSBC (HSBA.L) said on Monday it is acquiring the UK subsidiary of SVB for 1 pound, rescuing a key lender for technology start-ups in Britain. Below is a list of companies across the globe that have revealed their exposure to SVB:EUROPEAround 16 tech and life sciences companies in Europe have disclosed about $190 million in exposure to SVB in the UK and the United States. Moonpig adds that SVB UK is one of ten lenders that provide senior debt facilities to the group as part of a strong banking syndicateASIA-PACIFICNITRO SOFTWARE (NTO.AX)Australia's productivity software maker Nitro Software Ltd (NTO.AX) said it had about $12.18 million of its global cash reserves held on deposit at SVB.

HONG KONG, March 13 (Reuters) - Top Chinese property developer Country Garden Holdings (2007.HK) said on Monday it expected to post its first net loss since listing in 2007 due to a sluggish property market and flagged a worse-than-feared drop in core profit. Country Garden said in a filing its estimated net loss would be between 5.5 billion yuan to 7.5 billion yuan ($799 million to $1.09 billion), down from a 26.8 billion yuan profit in 2021. It said core net profit was expected to be in the range of 1 billion yuan to 3 billion yuan, still positive but down sharply from 26.9 billion yuan in 2021 and well below analysts' forecasts for core profit around 9.3 billion yuan, according to SmartEstimate. Smaller developer Logan Group Co Ltd 3380.HK also said it expected to record a net loss of 7 billion yuan to 9 billion yuan for 2022. "We expect to see more profit warnings for both China property and property management ahead," said Raymond Cheng, head of China research at CGS-CIMB Securities Ltd.

☆ Factbox: Which companies are affected by SVB collapse?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

ROKU (ROKU.O)Streaming devices maker says it has about $487 million, or 26% of its cash and cash equivalents, held in deposits with SVB. CIRCLEUS cryptocurrency firm Circle says $3.3 billion of its $40 billion of USD Coin reserves are at SVB. BLOCKFIBankrupt crypto lender BlockFi Inc has roughly $227 million in unprotected funds at SVB, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. VIR BIOTECHNOLOGY (VIR.O)Biotech firm says it maintains operating accounts at SVB with about $220 million as of Friday. EUROPEAround 16 tech and life sciences companies in Europe have disclosed about $190 million in exposure to SVB in the UK and the United States.

HONG KONG, March 9 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) is aiming to unveil some debt restructuring terms before the next winding-up court hearing on March 20 in order to seek another adjournment, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Once China's top-selling developer, Evergrande has been at the centre of a property debt crisis that has seen multiple developers default on offshore debt obligations over the past years, forcing many to enter into debt restructuring talks. Evergrande is due to appear in a Hong Kong court on March 20 for hearing on a winding up petition filed by a creditor. The developer told the court at that time it aimed to win creditors' approval for its debt restructuring proposals by as early as the end of February. Reporting by Clare Jim and Xie Yu in Hong Kong; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Sonali PaulOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Analysts estimate that nearly $700 billion of mortgages – close to one-eighth China's outstanding total – have been prepaid since early last year, when banks started to lower borrowing rates. This threatens banks' profits on mortgages, which accounted for about 30% of outstanding loans at China's five biggest banks as of last June, according to their latest financial reports. The current disinterest in new home purchases contrasts sharply with the overheated property market of prior years, when authorities kept mortgage rates high to cool speculation. Towards the middle of last year, however, regulators began lowering benchmark mortgage rates to prop up property demand, after a liquidity crisis among developers sent home prices and sales into a downward spiral. "I decided to do so because I'm burdened with a mortgage rate that's too high," Wang said.

☆ Evergrande Probe Finds Management Missteps and Convoluted Financing Arrangements
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Cao Li | Rebecca Feng | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China Evergrande Group’s weak controls and poor management decisions were to blame for a funding arrangement that ultimately led banks to seize $2 billion of deposits held by a subsidiary, an independent investigation found. The property giant used deposits from six units of Evergrande Property Services Group Ltd., a separate Hong Kong-listed company, to borrow money between late December 2020 and early August 2021, when the developer was in need of capital. It was part of a complicated financing arrangement that involved dozens of third-party companies and loans from multiple banks.

☆ Evergrande said to propose two offshore restructuring options- Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 17 (Reuters) - Embattled property developer China Evergrande Group (3333.HK) has been discussing a restructuring proposal with creditors that includes two options for extending payment deadlines on unsecured offshore debt, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday. The second proposal seeks creditors to swap part of their debt into shares in Evergrande and its auto and property-management units - China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group Ltd (0708.HK) and Evergrande Property Services Group Ltd (6666.HK) - by issuing new hybrid securities like convertible bonds, according to the report. For the second proposal, too, the maturities would be extended through installment plans, but for a shorter period with coupons set at around 6% to 7%, the report added. Once China's top-selling developer, Evergrande is now at the centre of the country's property crisis, saddled with over $300 billion in liabilities amid a debt restructuring. Reporting by Akanksha Khushi in Bengaluru; Editing by Uttaresh.V and Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The company is the property services arm of commercial property developer Dalian Wanda Group. A presentation by Wanda Commercial Management Group seen by Reuters said the book received 3.7 times over-subscription, with $500 million orders from long-only funds, including Blackrock, Fidelity, Pictet AM, Invesco and PAG. "This deal reopened the dormant China property and high-yield bond market, and received an active and positive reaction," it added. Dalian Wanda Group did not immediately respond to a request for comment while its commercial management arm could not be immediately reached. Unlike many other Chinese developers who focus on residential projects, Dalian Wanda Group relies on rental income and has an asset-light model.

☆ China Evergrande's stake in services unit drops to 51.7% on forced selling - filing
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HONG KONG, Dec 19 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group's (3333.HK) shareholding in its property services unit has fallen to 51.71% from 58.18% after forced selling of pledged shares by a third party, a Hong Kong stock exchange filing showed. Reuters could not immediately determine who sold the pledged shares. The last time pledged shares of Evergrande Property Services were enforced was a year ago, when the group's stake decreased from 60.96%. Trading in shares of both Evergrande Group and Evergrande Property Services has been suspended since March, pending the release of their 2021 financial results and an investigation of a bank enforcement of a pledge guarantee of the services unit. Evergrande Group, grappling with more than $300 billion in liabilities, is undergoing a debt restructuring after it defaulted late last year.

☆ Factbox: Australia Inc roiled by raft of cyberattacks since late 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] A woman uses her mobile phone as she walks past in front of an Optus shop in Sydney, Australia, February 8, 2018. AUSTRALIAN CLINICAL LABSAustralian Clinical Labs Ltd (ACL.AX), one of the country's largest pathology providers, said unit Medlab suffered a breach that exposed data of about 223,000 patients. TPG TELECOMAustralia's No.2 internet service provider TPG Telecom (TPG.AX) said it had been notified of unauthorised access to a hosted exchange service that hosts email accounts of up to 15,000 business customers. CBACommonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.AX said its Indonesian unit, PT Bank Commonwealth (PTBC), had been hit by a cyber incident involving unauthorised access of a web-based software application used for project management. IPHAustralian intellectual property services provider IPH Ltd (IPH.AX) said it had detected unauthorised access to a portion of its IT environment, compromising information including administrative documents and some client documents.

Leapmotor raised $800 million, while Onewo raised $733 million from their initial public offerings(IPOs). Lithium battery maker CALB is finalising its $1.28 billion Hong Kong IPO and has priced its shares at HK$38 each, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. Leapmotor and Onewo IPOs received a lukewarm response from the city's retail investors who did not take up the full amount of shares offered to them, according to the firms' filings. Leapmotor shares were priced at the low end of its marketed range, while Onewo shares were priced at the mid point of its indicated price range. read more($1 = 7.8498 Hong Kong dollars)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Scott Murdoch; Editing by Himani SarkarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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