HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s High Court has adjourned a hearing on a petition to wind up a Chinese property developer until July 29, a statement said on Thursday.
The company did not disclose the reason for the delay. The hearing was initially rescheduled to June 11 from May because Country Garden requested more time to prepare evidence.
If Country Garden can show progress in debt restructuring negotiations with its offshore creditors, it will help the developer abandon its winding-up petition.
Country Garden’s advisers, a dedicated bondholder group and a group of bank lenders are still working on due diligence on the developer’s balance sheet, sources said.
Last year, the developer defaulted on $11 billion in offshore bonds and is now in the process of restructuring its offshore debt.
Ever Credit Limited, a unit of Hong Kong-listed Kingboard Holdings, filed a lawsuit against Country Garden in February for failure to repay a $205 million loan.
Country Garden told some of its offshore creditors in April that it planned to submit a debt restructuring proposal in the second half of this year, Reuters reported.
Trading in the company’s shares was suspended from April 2 until the publication of financial results for 2023.