Distressed Country Garden's sales plunge 72pc in July

Bloomberg and staff reporter

Country Garden (2007) saw its contracted sales plunge 72 percent to 3.41 billion yuan (HK$3.73 billion) in July from a year ago, adding to the Chinese developer's woes as it tries to avoid liquidation.

This follows a 73 percent slide in June, corporate filings show.

The distressed real estate giant is counting on a turnaround in sales to increase its survival chances, as it fights a wind-up petition in a Hong Kong court following its 2023 default. Last week, it was given more time to work on an offshore debt restructuring plan when the case was adjourned to January.

"Buyer concerns around Country Garden's liquidity means they are likely to avoid its projects until fully completed," Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Kristy Hung wrote in a note on August 1.

Country Garden's month-on-month decline in home sales is smaller than the 36 percent slide at the 100 biggest real estate companies tracked by China Real Estate Information Corp.

A recent rescue package has failed to revive China's housing market, which remains a major drag on economic growth. New home prices dropped at close to the fastest pace in almost a decade in June, giving people less reason to invest in property.

Meanwhile, Agile Group (3383) posted a 64 percent drop in its presales to 810 million yuan last month from a year earlier.