Country Garden Extends Bonds to Avoid First Local Default

  • Coupon, principal installments were under grace period
  • Firm already defaulted on dollar debt; liquidation case looms
The Country Garden Holdings Co. headquarters in Foshan.Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
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Chinese developer Country Garden Holdings Co., one of the biggest symbols of the nation’s broader property debt crisis, won approval to push back payments on three yuan bonds, people familiar with the matter said, staving off its first local default for now.

Noteholders finished voting this week to extend coupon and principal installment payments to September, said the people, asking not to be identified. The company had missed initial deadlines from March 12 through April 12 for the payments. Grace periods of 30 trading days were set to soon expire, after which creditors could have declared defaults if they hadn’t agreed to the extensions.