China's property giant Evergrande files for bankruptcy protection in Manhattan court

China's heavy indebted spot developer Evergrande radical connected Thursday filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy extortion successful a U.S. court.

In a filing to the Manhattan bankruptcy court, the steadfast sought designation of restructuring talks nether mode successful Hong Kong, the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands.

CNBC has reached retired to Evergrande for remark but did not perceive back.

The world's astir indebted spot developer defaulted successful 2021 and announced an offshore indebtedness restructuring programme successful March. Trading of Evergrande shares person been suspended since March 2022.

The Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection allows a U.S. bankruptcy tribunal to intervene successful cross-border insolvency lawsuit involving overseas companies that are undergoing restructuring from creditors. It aims to support the debtors' assets and facilitate the rescue of businesses that are successful fiscal trouble.

Tianji Holdings, an affiliate of Evergrande, and its subsidiary Scenery Journey, besides filed for Chapter 15 extortion successful a Manhattan bankruptcy court, according to the filing.

China's monolithic existent property assemblage has agelong been a captious motor of maturation for the world's second-largest economy, and accounts for arsenic overmuch arsenic 30% of the country's gross home product.

Despite recent argumentation signals, capitalist worries linger. In precocious July, its apical leaders indicated a shift toward greater enactment for the spot sector, paving the mode for section governments to instrumentality circumstantial policies.

In July, Evergrande posted a combined loss of $81 cardinal implicit the past 2 years, aft struggling to decorativeness projects and repay suppliers and lenders.

Net losses for 2021 and 2022 were 476 cardinal yuan ($66.36 billion) and 105.9 cardinal yuan ($14.76 billion), respectively, arsenic a effect of spot write-downs, instrumentality of lands, losses connected fiscal assets and financing costs, the institution said.

The bankruptcy filing was signed by Jimmy Fong, who listed himself arsenic a "foreign representative" of China Evergrande Group. A "scheme creditors" meting is acceptable for Wednesday astatine the Hong Kong bureau of Sidley Austin, the U.S. based instrumentality steadfast representing Evergrande, the petition added.

— CNBC's Evelyn Cheng and Elliot Smith contributed to this story.