Country Garden's Timely Bond Payment Boosts Chinese Property Sector, Stocks Rally

Chinese property developer stocks surged on Wednesday, with Evergrande rising as much as 82% and other developers like Country Garden and Logan Group gaining over 25%. The gains came after Country Garden announced it had paid a $22.5 million bond coupon just before a grace period expired, narrowly avoiding default. This eased contagion fears in the Chinese property sector, which has struggled since Evergrande's default in 2021. The property sector rally led gains on the Hang Seng Index, though it remained negative overall due to declines in healthcare and industrial stocks.