Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day

China Evergrande is officially a defaulter. The U.S. wants to deepen ties across Asia. Covid hospital admissions jump in the U.S. Here’s what you need to know today.

Evergrande has officially been labeled a defaulter for the first time, the latest milestone in a drama likely to end in a massive restructuring. Fitch cut Evergrande to restricted default over its failure to pay two coupons by the end of a grace period on Monday, which could trigger cross defaults on its $19.2 billion of dollar debt. Fitch also applied the same label to Kaisa. But don't expect a government bailout: PBOC Governor Yi Gang called the matter a market event to be dealt with in a market-oriented way. China’s top leaders are set to convene this week to decide the economic agenda for 2022, and analysts are expecting the focus to shift to supporting growth from deleveraging and regulatory crackdowns.