Construction under way at Evergrande Cultural Tourism City in Jiangsu province. Reuters
Construction under way at Evergrande Cultural Tourism City in Jiangsu province. Reuters
Construction under way at Evergrande Cultural Tourism City in Jiangsu province. Reuters
Construction under way at Evergrande Cultural Tourism City in Jiangsu province. Reuters

China's banks downplay risks after Evergrande misses payments


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At least 10 of China’s publicly-traded banks have rushed to assuage investors' concerns over the deepening crisis at China Evergrande Group.

They told investors over the past two days that they had sufficient collateral for loans to the developer and that the risks were controllable.

China Minsheng Banking Corp, which topped the list of Evergrande’s principal banks at the end of last year, said on Thursday that its exposure to the firm had dropped by about 15 per cent from June last year and most of the loans had land, properties or projects under construction as collateral.

China Zheshang Bank said Evergrande's borrowing amounted to 3.8 billion yuan ($588 million). Industrial Bank said it had gradually reduced exposure to Evergrande and fully strengthened risk management on existing business with the developer. China Everbright Bank said its outstanding loans to Evergrande amounted to 5.4bn yuan and the lender had already made provision charges to avoid a major hit in the worst-case scenario.

The world’s most indebted developer’s cash crunch has become a key focus for global investors. Risky assets plunged around the world on Monday amid fears that an Evergrande collapse might spark financial contagion and curb growth in the world’s second-largest economy, where 27 per cent of the loans are for the real estate sector, more than any other industry.

Evergrande missed interest payments due on Monday to at least two of its largest bank creditors, people familiar with the matter had said, taking the cash-strapped developer a step closer to one of the nation’s biggest debt restructurings. Banking shares tumbled on the mainland on Wednesday as China’s financial market opened after a two-day public holiday.

HSBC, one of the biggest international banks in China, has yet to report any direct impact from the escalating problems at Evergrande, chief executive Noel Quinn said at a Bank of America conference on Wednesday. HSBC’s asset management arm has been among large holders of Evergrande debt, along with the likes of BlackRock and UBS. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, HSBC held a little over $200m of Evergrande’s dollar bonds.

Evergrande has borrowed about 572bn yuan from banks and other financial institutions including trusts. Nearly half are due in less than a year, according to its latest financial statements.

“Evergrande’s default crunch and its contagion impact present a potential systemic risk to China’s financial system,” Citigroup analysts led by Judy Zhang wrote in a note. They estimated that about 41 per cent of the banking system assets were either directly or indirectly associated with the property sector by the end of last year and any plummet in property prices may lead to a knock-on effect on banks’ asset quality due to higher default rates in related sectors and lower collateral value.

Chinese banks, with 50.8 trillion yuan of outstanding loans to developers and homebuyers, have already been hit by surging defaults as authorities escalated their curbs on the real estate sector in recent months. These curbs include controls on financing for developers.

In late August, ICBC said that its non-performing loans to real estate companies almost doubled in the first half of the year, while troubled loans to the sector at China Construction Bank jumped by 28 per cent. China Merchants Bank recorded an almost four-fold jump in bad loans to real estate.

In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

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Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

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704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
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151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.

Gothia Cup 2025

4,872 matches 

1,942 teams

116 pitches

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26 UAE teams

15 Lebanese teams

2 Kuwaiti teams

Liverpool’s fixtures until end of 2019

Saturday, November 30, Brighton (h)

Wednesday, December 4, Everton (h)

Saturday, December 7, Bournemouth (a)

Tuesday, December 10, Salzburg (a) CL

Saturday, December 14, Watford (h)

Tuesday, December 17, Aston Villa (a) League Cup

Wednesday, December 18, Club World Cup in Qatar

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Thursday, December 26, Leicester (a)

Sunday, December 29, Wolves (h)

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Launched: 2008

Categories: Health, energy, water, food, global high schools

Prize: Dh2.2 million (Dh360,000 for global high schools category)

Winners’ announcement: Monday, January 13

 

Impact in numbers

335 million people positively impacted by projects

430,000 jobs created

10 million people given access to clean and affordable drinking water

50 million homes powered by renewable energy

6.5 billion litres of water saved

26 million school children given solar lighting

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4. Shahada 

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The lowdown

Bohemian Rhapsody

Director: Bryan Singer

Starring: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee

Rating: 3/5

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:

Ajax 2-3 Tottenham

Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate

Final: June 1, Madrid

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo

Power: 258hp from 5,000-6,500rpm

Torque: 400Nm from 1,550-4,000rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 6.1L/100km

Price: from Dh362,500

On sale: now

The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
Global state-owned investor ranking by size

1.

United States

2.

China

3.

UAE

4.

Japan

5

Norway

6.

Canada

7.

Singapore

8.

Australia

9.

Saudi Arabia

10.

South Korea

Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Naga
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About Krews

Founder: Ahmed Al Qubaisi

Based: Abu Dhabi

Founded: January 2019

Number of employees: 10

Sector: Technology/Social media 

Funding to date: Estimated $300,000 from Hub71 in-kind support

 

WITHIN%20SAND
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POSSIBLE ENGLAND EURO 2020 SQUAD

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Dean Henderson.
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Forwards: Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Tammy Abraham, Callum Hudson-Odoi.

Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO

Championship play-offs, second legs:

Aston Villa 0
Middlesbrough 0

(Aston Villa advance 1-0 on aggregate)

Fulham 2
Sessegnon (47'), Odoi (66')

Derby County 0

(Fulham advance 2-1 on aggregate)

Final

Saturday, May 26, Wembley. Kick off 8pm (UAE) 

2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups

Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.

Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

Ain Issa camp:
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  • Houses 13,309 people, 2,092 families, 62 per cent children
  • Of the adult population, 49 per cent men, 51 per cent women (not including foreigners annexe)
  • Most from Deir Ezzor and Raqqa
  • 950 foreigners linked to ISIS and their families
  • NGO Blumont runs camp management for the UN
  • One of the nine official (UN recognised) camps in the region

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

PROFILE OF SWVL

Started: April 2017

Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport

Size: 450 employees

Investment: approximately $80 million

Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani

Updated: September 23, 2021, 1:02 PM`